Chapter 15 - The Unraveling on Maplewood Drive
The notice of pre-foreclosure was delivered on a Friday morning by a process server who didn't bother to hide his boredom. He handed the thick manila envelope to Arthur Sterling, muttered a perfunctory "Sign here," and walked back to his sedan before Arthur could even catch his breath.
Inside the house, the atmosphere was thick with despair. The electricity had been reduced to a restricted wattage tier because of an unpaid utility bill, and the refrigerator hummed a low, dying note in the kitchen. Julia sat at the chipped formica kitchen table, her phone clutched in her hand as she scrolled endlessly through job listings she was unqualified for, her infant son sleeping fitfully in a makeshift pallet on the floor.
"We have thirty days," Arthur said, his voice hollow as he dropped the envelope onto the table. He lowered himself heavily into a chair, looking like a man who had aged ten years in a single week. "Thirty days before the bank takes the house. And then... I don't know where we'll go."
Eleanor burst into fresh tears, covering her face with her hands. "It's all Patrick's fault! If he had just given us the money—if he hadn't turned his back on his own flesh and blood—we wouldn't be in this mess! He has millions of dollars sitting in some New York bank while his family is about to be put out on the street!"
Julia slammed her phone onto the table, the screen cracking from the impact. Her face twisted with bitter hatred. "Stop blaming Patrick, Mom! You coddled him, you ignored him, and now you expect him to save us? We made our bed! But you know what? I'm not going down without a fight."
Arthur looked up, bleary-eyed. "What are you talking about?"
"I'm going to New York," Julia said, standing up with sudden, manic energy. "Not to beg him. Not to ask for his pity. I’m going to his office, I’m going to find his boss, and I’m going to tell the whole world what kind of cold-hearted monster Patrick Sterling really is. Let's see how much he likes his fancy job when his firm finds out he abandons his aging parents and his sister to live in poverty!"
"Julia, no!" Eleanor cried, half-rising from her chair. "You can't do that! That'll just make him angry!"
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"Good!" Julia hissed, grabbing her purse and scooping up her crying baby. "Let him be angry. At least then he'll have to look us in the eye."
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