Chapter 10 - The View from the Top
The renovation on my mother's house took six months. I knocked down the walls that held bad memories, completely redesigning the space to let the light in. The dark, oppressive energy my father and stepmother had brought into the home was entirely scrubbed away, replaced by modern art, warm woods, and sprawling floor-to-ceiling windows.
I hosted a housewarming party in the spring.
The backyard was filled with laughter. Professor Aris was by the grill, debating case law with Harrison Ford, who was attempting to flip burgers in a designer polo shirt. Chancellor Sterling was holding court by the fire pit, regaling the younger associates with stories of his days in the courtroom.
I stood on the patio, holding a glass of wine, taking it all in.
I heard from a mutual acquaintance that my father was living in a small, cramped apartment across town, working as a low-level consultant for a minor property management group. My stepmother had left him when the money ran out, and Chloe was working a retail job at the mall, having abandoned her social media ambitions after the scandal made her permanently un-brandable.
They were exactly where they belonged: facing the reality of their own actions.
"Great party, Maya."
I turned to see Sarah, my brilliant assistant, smiling at me. She had just gotten into law school, and I had already promised to mentor her.
"Thanks, Sarah," I said, clinking my glass against hers.
"You know, considering everything you went through to get here," she said, looking out at the crowd of legal titans who now treated me as an equal, "you look incredibly peaceful."
May you like
I looked up at the clear, starry night sky. The freezing rain and the bitter cold of that graduation day felt like a lifetime ago. I had walked through the storm, and I had come out on the other side, not as a victim, but as a conqueror.
"I am," I smiled, taking a sip of the vintage wine. "It turns out, the view from the top is exactly as good as they say it is."
