THE UNSTOPPABLE JASON SALFORD

CHAPTER 2

Rachel was still on the phone when midnight passed.

"He said divorce," she told Vivienne. "Just like that. Calm as anything."

Vivienne laughed on the other end.

"Finally," she said. "Honestly Rachel, this is the best thing that could happen to you."

"He's after my money." Rachel paced the living room. "I know he is. The IPO is in two weeks. The company is about to be worth three times what it is now and suddenly he wants a divorce?"

"Obviously," Vivienne said. "That's the only reason a man like Jason would make that move. He has nothing. No career, no savings, nothing. He's been living off you for five years."

"He won't get a single cent," Rachel said. "Not one."

"He won't," Vivienne agreed. "Because I'll handle everything personally. I've drawn up tighter divorce agreements than this in my sleep. By the time I'm done, Jason Salford walks away with exactly what he came into this marriage with. Nothing."

Rachel exhaled.

"Come tomorrow morning," she said. "Early. I have the Harmon family signing to get to."

"I'll be there at eight," Vivienne said. "Don't worry about anything."

Rachel hung up and looked at the mess on the kitchen floor.

She left it there and went to bed.

***

Down the hall, Jason sat on the edge of Sophie's bed.

She was awake. She had been awake for a while.

Her small face looked up at him from the pillow with eyes that understood more than a seven year old should.

"I heard everything, Daddy," she said quietly.

Jason looked at his daughter for a moment.

Then he reached out and smoothed her hair back from her forehead.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart."

Sophie shook her head.

"Don't be sorry." Her voice was small but steady. "I'll always love you, Daddy. You're the only one who comes to my school plays. You're the only one who makes me breakfast." She paused. "Mommy doesn't even know what my teacher's name is."

Jason felt something tighten in his chest.

He pulled the blanket up around her shoulders.

"Get some sleep," he said softly.

"Are we going to be okay?" Sophie asked.

Jason looked at her.

"Yes," he said. "I promise."

Sophie studied his face for a moment. Then she nodded, satisfied, and closed her eyes.

Jason sat beside her until her breathing slowed and deepened.

Then he stepped quietly into the hallway and took out his phone.

He stood at the dark window and dialed a number he hadn't called in a long time.

It rang once.

"Young Master."

The voice on the other end was immediate. Breathless. Like the man had been sitting beside the phone waiting for years.

"Richard," Jason said quietly. "I need a place to stay."

There was a long silence.

Then Jason heard something that surprised even him.

Richard Harmon was crying.

"Young Master," the old man managed. "Do you know how long I have waited for this call?"

Jason said nothing.

"I will prepare everything tonight," Richard said, composing himself quickly. "Where are you? I will send cars immediately."

"Tomorrow morning is fine," Jason said. "I'll have Sophie with me."

"Of course. Of course." Richard's voice was thick with emotion. "Young Master, I will make sure everything is ready. You have my word."

Jason hung up.

He stood at the window for a moment, looking out at the quiet street below.

Then he went to pack.

***

Across the city, Richard Harmon put down his phone and stood up straight.

He was seventy years old and he had not moved that fast in a decade.

He walked to the center of the Harmon family's main hall and pulled the brass cord hanging from the ceiling.

The alarm bell rang through the entire estate.

Doors opened. Lights came on. Footsteps came from every direction.

Within four minutes, every member of the Harmon family was standing in the main hall in various states of sleep and confusion.

Richard stood before them all with wet eyes and a straight back.

"Tomorrow morning," he announced, "we go out together. Every single one of us. To welcome someone back."

The room murmured.

A young man near the back raised his hand.

"Uncle Richard, tomorrow is the day we sign the cooperation contract with the Salford woman's company."

Richard's expression didn't change.

"Cancel it," he said simply.

The young man blinked. "But the agreement is already—"

"Cancel it." Richard's voice dropped to something quiet and absolute. "Welcoming our guest tomorrow is the only thing that matters. Any member of this family who does not show up will be removed from the Harmon family register by nightfall."

No one said another word.

***

At eight the next morning, Vivienne arrived at the house with a leather folder under her arm and a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

Rachel was already dressed and ready to leave. She handed Vivienne a coffee and pointed toward the living room.

"He's in there," she said. "I don't have time for this. I need to get to the signing." She picked up her bag. "Make sure he gets nothing."

Then she was gone.

Vivienne walked into the living room.

Jason was sitting calmly on the sofa. Sophie sat beside him, already dressed in her school clothes with her small backpack on her lap.

Vivienne looked at Jason the way people look at something they have already decided is worthless.

"Well," she said, sitting across from him and opening the folder. "Let's make this quick. You get no assets, no property and no financial settlement. Rachel is being very generous letting you walk away clean." She slid the papers across the table. "Sign here and here."

Jason looked at the papers.

"My only condition is full custody of Sophie," he said.

Vivienne stared at him.

She had prepared for a fight. For demands. For threats. She had a counter-argument ready for every possible thing he could ask for.

She had not prepared for this.

She recovered quickly and smiled.

"Full custody?" She laughed. "Jason, you have no income, no home and no prospects. What judge in this city is going to give a man like you full custody of anything?"

Sophie looked at Vivienne with steady eyes.

Vivienne ignored her.

"Sign the papers," she said. "Take what little dignity you have left and move on."

Jason picked up the pen.

He signed. Quickly. Without hesitating.

Vivienne looked down at the signature.

She had expected resistance. Anger. Tears even.

She got nothing.

Jason capped the pen and set it on the table.

"Is that all?" he asked.

Vivienne snapped the folder shut. She couldn't hide her irritation.

"You do realize," she said, leaning forward slightly, "that without Rachel's money you are absolutely nothing. You can barely afford to feed yourself, let alone a child."

Jason stood up.

He picked up Sophie's hand.

"Come on, sweetheart," he said.

"Jason," Vivienne called after him. "I'm talking to you."

He walked toward the door without looking back.

Vivienne watched him with narrowed eyes.

Outside, the sound of engines approached.

Many engines.

Vivienne frowned and moved to the window.

Her mouth fell open.

A convoy of twenty luxury vehicles had stopped outside the house. Black. Polished. The kind of cars that made people stop walking and stare.

The lead car door opened.

A tall, well-dressed man stepped out.

Vivienne pressed herself against the glass.

She had no idea who these people were.

But something about the way they moved made her stomach drop.