Chapter 24: Under New Management
226 words
The final scar was a reminder, but the building was a statement.
Elena stood on the sidewalk looking up at the sleek glass facade. Workmen were just finishing the new sign. The gold letters of 'Thorne Aesthetics' had been ripped down, leaving ghost outlines on the stone. In their place, bold silver letters read: PHOENIX AESTHETICS.
She walked in. The lobby no longer looked like a nightclub. It was warm, professional, and welcoming.
Kendra was at the reception desk, barking orders into a phone, looking oddly at home in a blazer that was actually ironed for once.
"We're booked solid for three months," Kendra grinned. "Low-cost reconstructive program is huge. We're actually helping people, Elena."
Elena adjusted the lapel of her sharp red power suit—no more scarves, no more hiding.
"And the medical director?" Elena asked.
The door to Office 1 opened. Tyler, the intern who had testified, stepped out. He looked older, confident, wearing a white coat with his name embroidered on it. He wasn't shaking anymore.
"Ready for rounds, Ms. Vance," Dr. Evans said comfortably.
"Good," Elena nodded. She glanced at a tabloid on the coffee table. The headline showed a disheveled Marcus Thorne leaving a shady urgent care clinic in a strip mall, where he now cracked pimples for minimum wage.
Elena tossed the magazine into the trash. "Let's get to work."
End of Chapter 24
