Chapter 385
Chapter 385:
“No,” he agreed, surprising her. “It was mercy. Something far more powerful.” She gathered her papers, avoiding his gaze. “It was good business. His family knows shipping. We don’t. This way, Kane Industries gets a percentage of profits without the operational headaches.”
Alexander smiled faintly. “If you say so.”
They walked together back to her office, where Victoria waited, elegant as always in a white suit that emphasized her thinness, but also the determined set of her shoulders.
“Well?” Victoria asked. “Is it done?”
Camille nodded, setting the signed papers on her desk. “Yes. Rodriguez Shipping returns to Stefan. With conditions.”
Victoria’s expression gave nothing away. “And the conditions?”
“Ethical practices. Environmental remediation. Educational funding. All the things we discussed.”
Victoria nodded slowly. “Not what I would have done.”
“I know,” Camille said quietly.
“But then,” Victoria continued, a hint of something like pride in her voice, “that’s rather the point, isn’t it? You’re not me.”
Alexander poured three glasses of water from the carafe on Camille’s desk. “To new beginnings,” he offered, raising his glass in a small toast.
They drank in silence, each lost in private thoughts. Outside, the rain had stopped. Sunlight broke through the clouds, casting golden light across the city.
“He asked why,” Camille said suddenly.
“And what did you tell him?” Victoria asked.
“That I choose to.”
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Victoria smiled, a real smile, rare and transformative. “The most powerful words in any language. ‘I choose.'”
“He might betray that choice,” Alexander said, the caution in his voice unmistakable. “The Rodriguez family has generations of business habits that won’t change overnight.”
“He might,” Camille agreed. “But I’m betting he won’t.”
Victoria stood and walked to the window, gazing out at the city as she had done countless times from this very spot. “When I found you in that parking garage, you had lost everything. Your husband. Your sister. Your family name. Your sense of self…”
Camille and Alexander exchanged a glance, surprised by this unexpected reminiscence.
“I taught you how to use that loss,” Victoria continued. “How to transform it into power. How to take revenge on those who hurt you.” She turned back to face them. “But I never taught you mercy, because I never had any to give.” The admission hung in the air, startling in its vulnerability from a woman who had always seemed invulnerable.
“Perhaps,” Victoria said, “that’s what you’ll teach me, in the time I have left.”
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