Chapter 23 - Darius’s Apology
Darius requested one mediated communication five years after the gala.
Noel almost refused.
His attorney said:
“No legal issue. He wants closure.”
Maya responded:
“Closure is not a right.”
Noel agreed.
Then changed her mind.
Not because Darius deserved.
Because she wanted to test whether hearing him still had power.
The mediation happened by video.
Separate locations.
Mediator controlled.
Darius looked older.
Not ruined.
Ordinary.
He worked.
Lived.
Paid bills.
No tuxedo.
He began:
“I’m sorry.”
Noel waited.
“I hit you.”
“Yes.”
“I grabbed you.”
“Yes.”
“I humiliated you.”
“Yes.”
“I had an affair.”
“Yes.”
“I used your work without giving you credit.”
“Yes.”
“I lied to investors.”
“Yes.”
“I used Leila.”
“Yes.”
He swallowed.
“I told myself all of it was temporary until I could fix things.”
Noel thought of Post Close Cleanup.
“Exactly.”
“I believed results would make methods irrelevant.”
“They didn’t.”
“No.”
Then:
“I blamed you for everything after dinner.”
“Yes.”
“I know now Mercer Ridge would probably have walked anyway.”
“Yes.”
“I thought you destroyed Holt Table.”
“You didn’t own Holt Table by the end.”
“I know.”
Silence.
Darius asked:
“Do you forgive me?”
Noel had imagined that question for years.
Her answer surprised her.
“I don’t organize my life around whether I forgive you.”
His face changed.
“What does that mean?”
“It means I’m finished.”
Not angry.
Not kind.
Finished.
He nodded.
“Thank you for listening.”
“You’re welcome.”
The call ended.
Noel waited for shaking.
None.
She made tea.
Answered two emails.
Went to bed.
Serena later asked:
“Was it useful?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“He became a person again.”
“Not monster?”
“No.”
“Does that make what he did smaller?”
“No.”
May you like
Exactly.
Human beings do not need to become monsters for boundaries to be justified.
