Chapter 8 - THE WOMAN WHO WOULD NOT BE BOUGHT
Tessa watched the news from her apartment.
Vincent Costa, long believed incapacitated, had appeared at his estate and exposed a plot involving his fiancée and underboss. Reporters described it as a sensational reversal inside one of the city's most notorious criminal organizations.
The broadcast showed Camila entering a police vehicle.
Then Vincent standing at the ballroom entrance.
Tessa switched off the television.
She was glad the people responsible for the attack were being investigated. She was less certain what to make of the man at the center of it.
Two days later, a courier delivered a letter from the household's human resources office. Her medical leave would continue, and she could return to her position when cleared by her doctor. The letter also confirmed she would receive compensation for her workplace injuries through the appropriate process.
No conditions. No nondisclosure agreement. No demand that she thank Vincent.
She called the office to verify it.
The administrator sounded surprised. “Of course, Ms. Bell. Your employment rights don't depend on Mr. Costa's personal preferences.”
Tessa sat down slowly.
A week later, Leo called from Cleveland with news.
An independent claims administrator had contacted him about the bakery. Records showed coercion in the original sale. He could seek restitution and possibly regain the lease, subject to the landlord and legal proceedings.
“Do you want to go back?” Tessa asked.
“I don't know,” he admitted. “I thought I would. But Cleveland's starting to feel like home.”
“Then choose what makes you happy.”
Leo laughed softly. “You sound like Mom.”
After the call, Tessa went for a walk. Her ribs still hurt, but the cold air felt good.
She stopped outside a neighborhood bakery and watched a little girl point excitedly at pastries in the window.
For years, Tessa had measured her life in bills due and shifts available. Now she wondered whether she could finish the nursing program she had abandoned when her mother became ill.
She had completed two semesters. She still remembered how much she loved helping patients.
She called the community college the next morning.
An adviser explained the reinstatement process and financial aid options.
Tessa filled out the application that afternoon.
When Vincent called later, she told him.
“I'm going back to school.”
There was a pause.
“That's wonderful.”
“I didn't ask you to pay for it.”
“I wasn't going to offer.”
She smiled. “Good.”
Then he asked, “May I take you to dinner sometime?”
Tessa looked out the window.
“Not while I work for you.”
“Fair.”
“And not while your legal situation is unresolved.”
“Also fair.”
She expected him to negotiate.
Instead he said, “I hope school goes well.”
May you like
After hanging up, she sat for a long time with the phone in her hand.
She was beginning to understand that respect could be demonstrated by the things a person chose not to demand.
