Chapter 2

The next day was my fifty-third birthday.

In twenty-five years, no one in the Sanchez family had ever bothered to celebrate it. So when Terry called out of nowhere, it was the first time in living memory.

"Mom, don't open the shop today. Come to The Grand Hyatt Ballroom, I've booked a private room. Let's have a nice family dinner."

At that moment, Alex was giving me his report on the Harvest Dining audit.

"Chairwoman Prescott, Harvest has run at a loss for three straight months. There's a two-point-three-million shortfall on the books. Yesterday Sabrina Lowell applied to the group for another five million in operating funds."

I looked at the old photo album, at the four of us together, and finally closed it.

Call it one last look at them.

When I pushed open the door of the private room, Owen and the two kids were toasting Sabrina.

A brand-new designer bag sat beside her. There was no cake on the table, and no place set for me.

Terry saw me come in and didn't even stand up. He just put out his hand.

"Mom, you've still got half a million in that savings account, right? Give me the PIN."

"Sabrina's company is expanding, and she said I could buy in alongside her."

That half a million was what I'd scraped together selling breakfast sandwiches, day after day. It was the money I'd set aside for my own medical care.

I pressed my hand down on my bag.

"So you didn't call me here for my birthday. You called me here for my money."

Terry frowned.

"We're family. Why put it like that? Whatever I earn is still yours in the end, isn't it?"

"You're twenty-seven years old."

I stared at him.

"Have you ever bought me a single pair of socks? Ever paid one cent of my medical bills?"

I looked at the bag beside Sabrina, the one worth well over a hundred thousand.

"You'd take my money to shower on someone else, then promise me an easy retirement with nothing but your mouth. Terry, I can practically feel you counting the coins right in my face."

Owen slammed the table and shouted.

"The doctor scares you a little and you actually want to go under the knife? Sabrina's willing to bring Terry in and help him make money. Do you know what kind of chance that is? What kind of mother is this selfish?"

"It's not you in pain. It's not you on the operating table. Of course you can be generous with it."

"Owen, you're trading my life-saving money for your son's future. Did you ever once ask whether I was willing?"

Joan suddenly yanked my bag off me and dug out the bank card.

"Mom, do you even understand what an investment is? Is the PIN Terry's birthday? We'll move the money first, and pay you back once we've made a profit."

I reached to grab it back, but Owen seized my shoulder and shoved me backward.

My waist struck the corner of the table hard enough to break me out in a cold sweat.

He froze for a second and instinctively started to reach for me, his hand halfway out. He even pulled out the painkillers I take all the time.

Sabrina gave a small cough.

"Owen, my chest feels a little tight."

Owen pulled his hand right back and turned to pour her water, not even picking the pills up off the floor.

Sabrina took a sip and sighed at me.

"Monica's done manual labor her whole life. It's only natural she'd cling to a little money like this. Once the company gets back on its feet, I'll keep a support-staff job open for her. I'd never let her go hungry."

I braced myself against the edge of the table and straightened up.

"You take my life-saving money to plug your hole, then reward me with a support-staff job."

"Sabrina, you really do have some nerve."

The smile on her face stiffened.

"I'm only trying to be kind."

"How much your kindness is worth, the audit is going to spell out very soon."

By then Joan had already linked the card to her phone and held the facial-recognition screen up in front of me.

"Mom, just look at it. Don't make me fall out with you in front of everyone."

I snatched the phone out of her hand and called the bank right there to report the card lost.

"You want to fall out? Fine. I'll give you what you want."

"From this moment on, anyone who touches my money again, I go straight to the police."

Owen held Sabrina against him, his face gone livid.

"You reported it lost? You are paying for this dinner today, no arguments!"

I called the waiter over and paid only for my own cup of tea.

Then I took out my other phone and sent instructions to the group's finance department.

Suspend all new disbursements to Harvest Dining.

Cancel Sabrina Lowell's signing authority at The Grand Hyatt Ballroom.

I turned and walked out.

I had barely reached the lobby when I heard the shouting start up behind me.

Owen tried to settle the bill with Sabrina's company card, and it was declined again and again.

The manager came over with security and stopped them.

"Ms. Lowell, the outstanding tab your company signed for is due as well."

"If it isn't taken care of today, we'll have no choice but to call the police."