CHAPTER 9: Grant Runs Out of Names

By the time the guests were escorted into the east salon, Grant had run out of soft names for betrayal.
He could not call it misunderstanding. The camera existed.
He could not call it marriage trouble. Leonard's attorneys were already removing him from three boards.
He could not call it hysteria. Ava stood straighter than anyone in the hall.
Celeste sat near the side wall with her hands locked together, no longer touching him, no longer whispering promises.
Grant turned to Ava with the face he used when he wanted forgiveness without confession.
'I made a mistake.'
Ava looked past him to the staircase where she had landed.
The marble steps were spotless again, as if the building had already decided not to keep his side of the story.
'A mistake is forgetting a date,' she said. 'A mistake is signing the wrong page.'
Her voice stayed quiet.
'Standing beside the woman who hurt your wife is a choice.'
One by one, the messages reached Grant's phone. His hotel lender requested a call. His political donor withdrew from the weekend dinner. His chief counsel asked whether he was alone and safe to speak.
He was not alone, and nothing about him was safe anymore.
Grant had no answer left.