“State your business.”

“I’ve talked it over with my mother. We don’t want a bloodbath over assets. You gave me your best years, and I won’t let you leave with nothing. I’m prepared to offer you a lump sum to walk away quietly.”

A bitter laugh escaped me. “You’re prepared to offer me a lump sum? I own seventy percent of the equity in this property.”

Silence. “Don’t let pettiness ruin your future, Sarah. You’re an aging, divorced woman who can’t have children. You won’t find another man of my caliber easily.”

That was the match to the powder. I looked down at the medical file, my knuckles white.

“Tomorrow morning. Nine o’clock. My attorney’s office in the Loop,” I said. “If you’re even a minute late, I email the entire record of your affair — including the timestamped hallway security footage — to your corporate HR department, and I copy every one of your relatives.”