Chapter 9 - Shadows of the Past
While the upper echelons of Maison Reed were charting a renewed course of integrity and elegance, reality was closing in fast on Brittany Morales.
The studio apartment in the arts district felt smaller with every passing day. The minimalist white walls seemed to press inward, suffocating her with their emptiness. Her designer clothes—the asymmetrical wool coats, the limited-edition handbags, the silk blouses—now hung in the closet like mocking reminders of a life that had vanished overnight.
Her phone, previously a non-stop lifeline of social invitations, designer sample sales, and brunch reservations, was now a dead weight. When she called her former friends—the women who had giggled alongside her at the funeral and cheered for her petty remarks—they made polite excuses, shortened the conversation, and gradually stopped answering altogether. In the shallow waters of high-society posturing, failure was contagious, and nobody wanted to be seen associating with someone who had been publicly fired by the founder of the luxury house she claimed to master.
Worse still, Ethan had officially filed for divorce. The legal papers had arrived via courier two days prior, drafted with clean, unfeeling precision. There was no emotional negotiation, no plea for reconciliation, and no alimony padding to cushion her fall. Ethan’s lawyer had made it clear: the marriage was over, and Brittany’s financial demands would not be entertained.
Desperate and running low on savings, Brittany decided to do something she had never thought she would stoop to.
May you like
She swallowed her overwhelming pride, put on her most understated black coat—ironically, a cheap knockoff she had once mocked in private—and took the subway across town to the old historic district where Eleanor’s farmhouse sat tucked away behind ancient oak trees.
She didn't call ahead. She didn't announce her arrival. She simply walked up the gravel driveway, her high heels clicking unevenly against the stones, and raised her hand to knock on the heavy timber door.
