Chapter 7: The Price of Goodbye

He pulled a bank card from his jacket.

It was a heavy, matte black thing—probably the same one he used to buy gaming gear on Amazon late at night.

I raised an eyebrow. "What’s this supposed to mean?"

"You don’t trust me anymore. There’s no point in me staying at Redfield."

"Caleb, do you even know what the breach penalty is?"

Eight hundred thousand. Probably more than double what he’s earned over the years.

I remembered every meeting with the lawyers, every page of the contract, every clause I’d fought for. Suddenly it all felt both too much and not enough.

"I know. Don’t worry, there’s three hundred thousand on this card. I’ll give you the rest soon."

He shoved the card toward me, not meeting my eyes. For a second, I almost laughed—was this what three years boiled down to?

His family’s just average—not rich enough to help him out. Looks like he and Silver Arrow had a good talk today. That’s where his confidence comes from.

*[What’s the side chick’s expression? The star player’s already a league champion—any team will pay him millions a year. Why should he care about her breach penalty?]*

*[Exactly! Caleb, hurry up and leave Redfield. You’ll see there’s no golden rain outside!]*

I was quiet for a few seconds, then took the black card.

"Fine, but the contract requires a lump-sum payment. If you can’t pay it all, I’ll tack on another hundred thousand in penalties."

Caleb looked troubled, but in the end, he agreed.

For a moment, it was just business—cold, transactional, the way things always get at the end.