He looked at it with suspicion.
“Should I be concerned?”
“Only if you dislike surprises.”
“I dislike most surprises.”
“Then this will be educational.”
She left before he could ask another question.
Ethan waited until the conference room door closed before opening the box.
Inside was a silver frame.
A crisp fifty-dollar bill rested behind the glass.
Beneath it was a small engraved plaque.
FOR THE FORMULA. WITH INTEREST.
For several seconds, Ethan didn’t move.
Then he laughed.
It wasn’t the polished laugh he used at corporate dinners, or the polite one he offered when someone told a predictable joke.
It was a genuine laugh, warm and unguarded.
He remembered the message.
The unfamiliar number.
The trembling voice behind the door.
The baby who had finally stopped crying.
He remembered the woman who had refused to accept money without understanding the terms, even when her own circumstances were desperate.
And he remembered the question she had asked him.
