Goodbye, Mr. Regret

Vince snatched Yates's phone and abruptly hung up.

Talking about the movie inevitably brought up that rotten thing Timothy had done.

Eyes red, Vince stared at Yates. "That film... Jessy, she..." His voice caught, words tangled in his throat. He wanted to cry.

Vince's eyes brimmed with tears. "Now I finally understand why Timothy handed you the charging station project that day. The terms were unbelievably generous —he'd put up all the money, I wouldn't have to spend a cent, and I'd get the lion's share of the company. Turns out, he was laying a trap for me from the very start, waiting for me to fall for it. He wanted me to feel indebted to him so that, when Jessy's background was exposed, I'd be left helpless."

"Oh God!" Vince's fist thumped against his chest as if to shake off the thought. “I can't imagine what would've happened if I'd actually taken his bait."

He was grateful that, no matter how slick Timothy's words had been that day, no matter how dazzling the offer, something had always felt off. Vince had refused, even when Timothy made it sound like a golden opportunity.

Yates felt a dull ache in his own heart.

Vince went on, "That day, right after I walked out, Jessy called me for help with getting her movie into theaters. You were putting pressure on Carlisle, and Carlisle reached out to her. That's when she finally told me the truth."

"Yates, can you imagine?"

were dozens of

Timothy, about their family, that she gave up her own career. Timothy never let her meet anyone outside. Every time there was an important event, he'd wire her half a million dollars just to make her stay away. She

couldn't speak, so they could make this film. She helped them realize their dreams, find their

she saw that money come in, every time she spent

family. Isn't it obvious? All of this, everything she bottled up, all the pain she

pain. By the time you know something's wrong, it's already too

fall, bowing his head. His eyes were bloodshot,

sister he'd cherished and protected had

"I'll never forgive Timothy. Not in

made it sound like nothing. God knows how many sleepless nights

anyone. Even when Timothy

with me, or

she never once blamed anyone. She was suffering, but she was always thinking of others, always warming

the finest,