Chapter 3 - The Arrival of Sarah
The executive office on the 80th floor of Graves Tower looked less like a corporate workspace and more like a museum. Floor-to-ceiling glass windows offered a panoramic view of the New York skyline, while priceless oil paintings hung on dark wood-paneled walls.
Nathaniel didn't sit behind his massive mahogany desk. Instead, he led me to a plush leather sofa, immediately ordering an executive assistant to bring hot chocolate, pastries, and a warm blanket.
“Sit, Ruby,” he urged softly, watching me with an intensity that made me feel both cherished and nervous.
While I nibbled cautiously on a warm chocolate croissant, Nathaniel paced the length of the room, speaking into a sleek corporate phone on speaker.
“Marcus, I don't care where she is or what shift she’s working. Send a town car right now. Bring Sarah Miller to Graves Tower immediately. Use police escort if you have to, but do not take no for an answer.”
“Sir, are you sure?” Marcus’s voice crackled through the speaker. “If we involve local authorities—”
“Just do it, Marcus!” Nathaniel barked, hanging up the phone abruptly.
He turned around, running a hand through his silver hair as he stared out at the sprawling city.
“Mr. Graves?” I asked timidly, holding my mug with both hands. “Are you going to have my mom arrested because of the eviction notice? We didn't mean to cause trouble. I swear I was just trying to return your wallet.”
Nathaniel snapped his head toward me, crossing the room in three long strides before dropping to his knee in front of the sofa once again. He gently took my hands, wrapping his large palms around my small, cold fingers.
“Arrested? Oh, no, Ruby. Never,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “You haven't caused trouble. In fact... you’ve brought something back to me that I thought was lost forever.”
“What did I bring back?” I tilted my head.
Before Nathaniel could answer, the private elevator chimed softly.
The heavy doors slid open, revealing Marcus escorting a terrified woman in a faded cotton jacket.
My heart leaped into my throat.
“Mom?!” I cried out, jumping off the sofa.
Mom looked frantic, her face pale, her hair tied back in a hurried ponytail. She had been pulled straight from her cleaning job at the downtown hospital, her uniform barely concealed beneath her coat. When she saw me standing in the center of a billionaire's luxury suite surrounded by armed guards and towering executives, she let out a breathless gasp.
“Ruby! Oh, thank God, are you alright?!” Mom rushed forward, dropping to her knees and pulling me into a desperate, crushing hug, burying her face in my hair. “I was so scared! When the police car pulled up and told me—what is going on? What did you do?”
“She didn't do anything wrong, Sarah,” a deep, trembling voice resonated from across the room.
Mom froze.
Slowly, she lifted her head from my shoulder, turning her wide, terrified eyes toward the man standing by the window.
For several seconds, the executive suite became completely dead silent. The air seemed to vanish from the room. Mom’s color drained entirely, her lips parting in a silent, horrified scream that never made it out of her throat.
She stared at Nathaniel Graves as if she were looking at a ghost risen straight from the grave.
“Nathaniel...” Mom whispered, her voice trembling so violently it was barely audible.
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Nathaniel took a slow step forward, his hands raised palms-up in a gesture of absolute vulnerability.
“Hello, Sarah,” he said softly, a tear spilling over his weathered cheek. “It’s been twelve years.”
