Chapter 15 - Ethan Returns With A Different Attitude
Two years after the opening, Ethan requested a meeting.
His consulting business had shrunk.
The Meridian scandal damaged his reputation.
He had not been criminally charged in connection with the gallery sale
because the evidence supported improper self-dealing and undisclosed
conflicts more clearly than forgery by him.
He had repaid disputed fees through settlement.
Claire did not enjoy his decline.
She did not mourn it either.
Ethan apologized for laughing while his mother humiliated her.
Then for kicking her belongings.
“That part wasn’t business,” he said. “That was me.”
Claire appreciated the distinction.
He had spent years believing money made cruelty look like confidence.
It did not.
Claire did not invite him back into gallery management.
May you like
An apology could repair a conversation.
Not automatically restore authority.
