Chapter 10 - The Inmate VisitThree days later, I drove to the county detention center alone. Adrian had offered to accompany me, but I needed to do this by myself.
The visitation room smelled of industrial floor cleaner and stale coffee. I sat behind the thick plexiglass partition, waiting. A minute later, a heavy metal door opened, and a guard led my father inside.
He looked unrecognizable. The immaculate tailored suits were gone, replaced by a bright orange jumpsuit that was two sizes too big. His hair was unwashed, and the arrogant, booming posture that had dominated my entire life was completely gone. He looked small, frail, and ancient.
He sat down heavily, picking up the plastic telephone receiver with a shaking hand. I picked up mine.
“Claire,” he rasped, his voice cracking. “Claire, thank God. You have to fix this. You have to talk to Sterling.”
“I can’t fix this, Dad,” I said, my voice smooth and devoid of anger. “You committed federal bank fraud.”
“It was a temporary cash-flow problem!” he pleaded, leaning against the glass, his eyes wide and bloodshot. “We were going to cover the loans as soon as the Q3 contracts cleared! You know how business works! You built the forecasting model!”
“I built a model based on real numbers,” I corrected. “You altered those numbers so you could buy a second yacht and pay for Vanessa’s penthouse in Manhattan.”
“Vanessa is your sister!” he yelled, though his voice lacked its old power. “She’s rotting in a cell down the hall! She can’t handle this place, Claire! She’s having panic attacks! You have to get Sterling to drop the civil suits so we can post bail!”
I looked at the man who had called me a failure three days ago in front of two hundred people.
“When you slapped my report to the floor three years ago,” I said quietly, “you told me to stay in my lane. You told me I was just an analyst.”
“I was wrong! I was trying to push you!” he lied desperately.
“No, you weren't,” I said. “You meant every word. You thought I was weak because I stayed quiet. But quiet doesn't mean weak, Dad. It just means I was listening.”
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I stood up, hanging the receiver back on the hook.
He slammed his hands against the glass, screaming something I could no longer hear as the guard grabbed his shoulder to lead him away. I turned my back and walked out into the sunlight.
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