Chapter 4

Sarah called Mike' s parents, George and Carol Miller, and his brother, David.

She requested an urgent family meeting at their comfortable, upper-middle-class home.

When Sarah arrived, Mike was already there, looking pale and anxious.

Chloe was conspicuously absent.

Sarah laid out the events of the previous night calmly and factually, omitting no detail of Mike and Chloe's behavior, nor Chloe' s attack on Mr. Peterson.

George Miller' s face grew stern. Carol looked horrified, her hand flying to her mouth.

David, usually quick with a joke, was uncharacteristically silent, his expression grim.

"Michael," George said, his voice dangerously low. "Is this true? You allowed your assistant to insult a potential business partner of this magnitude? While you were intoxicated?"

Mike stammered, "Dad, it was... Chloe had a little too much to drink. Sarah overreacted."

"Overreacted?" Carol exclaimed, her initial fondness for Sarah reasserting itself. "She was trying to save a multi-million dollar deal your son was sabotaging! And this Chloe girl... promoting her after such an incident? Michael, have you lost your mind?"

David finally spoke. "Mike, this is bad. Really bad. Chloe sounds like a disaster. You need to fire her. Immediately."

The Millers, to Sarah' s relief, were siding with her. They saw the damage Mike and Chloe had inflicted.

They valued Sarah' s contribution, not just to NextGen, but to Mike' s life.

"She' s the one who built that company, Mike," George reminded him, his voice firm. "Sarah gave you an opportunity most men only dream of. And this is how you repay her? By letting some... assistant, jeopardize everything?"

Carol turned to Sarah, her eyes full of apology. "Sarah, dear, we are so sorry. This Chloe person, she needs to go. Mike, you will terminate her employment today."

Mike looked cornered, his eyes darting between his parents and Sarah.

He mumbled, "Yes, Mom. Dad. I' ll... I' ll handle it."

But Sarah saw the flicker of resentment in his eyes, the way he avoided her gaze.

She knew this wasn't over. He was too easily swayed, too susceptible to Chloe's influence.

Even as his family condemned Chloe, Sarah felt a chill.

Mike' s primary concern wasn' t the business, or even his marriage. It was his own ego.

And Chloe knew exactly how to feed it.

As she left the Miller home, Sarah maintained her resolve. The divorce was happening.

This family intervention was a necessary step, but it wouldn't change the core problem: Mike.