from the employment file.
Catherine continued talking quietly.
“Mom’s old bills.”
She closed her eyes.
“Rent. Everything.”
Then she reached toward the money.
Ethan felt the same cold disappointment he had expected to feel.
He almost stepped into the room.
But Catherine did not take anything.
Instead, she straightened one crooked bundle.
Then another.
She frowned.
“Why is this scattered everywhere?”
Ethan stared.
Catherine began arranging the money.
She carefully aligned the bundles, gathered several loose bills, and counted enough to confirm the total.
Then she pulled a battered little
notebook from her pocket.
On a blank page, she wrote:
Found $400,000 on dresser in master bedroom. Counted and arranged. Nothing removed.
Catherine Owens.
She tore out the page and placed it on top of the money.
Ethan remained silent.
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Catherine did not immediately leave.
She stood there staring at the cash.
Then she lowered her head and folded her hands together.
“Thank you for this job,” she whispered. “You know how badly I need it.”
Ethan’s breathing slowed.
Catherine continued.
“Please help me remember that needing something
