My family kicked my 7-year-old and me out during Easter dinner. ‘You should leave and never return,’ my sister said. ‘Easter is so much better without you,’ my mom added. I didn’t beg. I just said, ‘Then you won’t mind me doing this.’ Five minutes later, they were begging me to undo it…

I picked up Lily’s coat. I didn’t cry. I didn’t plead. I didn’t remind them of the times I’d stayed up all night fixing their messes.

“If that’s how you feel,” I said, my voice dropping to a level of authority that made Vanessa blink in sudden, instinctive confusion. “If I am the dead branch… then you won’t mind me taking my nutrients with me.”

“Whatever that means,” Vanessa scoffed, turning back to her phone. “Just go. Arthur, the doorman, will show you out.”

I walked out the front door, the heavy oak closing behind me with a final, echoing thud. I stood on the porch for a moment, Lily’s hand in mine.

 I pulled out my phone, opened an encrypted financial app, and with three quick, cold taps, I hit a red button labeled “TERMINATE ALL SUBSIDIARY ACCESS: STERLING ACCOUNTS.” I whispered to the closed door, “Let’s see how well the tree grows without the soil.”

Chapter 3: The Clock Starts Ticking

“Are we going to be okay, Mommy?” Lily asked as I buckled her into my car—a modest, late-model sedan that I chose specifically because it didn’t scream “CEO.”

“Better than okay, baby,” I said, my heart hammering against my ribs. “We’re finally going to be free.”