Liam unfolded the notice slowly, smoothing the damp paper against his knee.
The room had gone so quiet that Grace could hear the small, uneven breaths coming from Noah beneath the wool blanket.
At the top of the page was the name Cooper Residential Holdings.
Beneath it was the address of the Marlowe boarding house on Weller Street.
The notice ordered Grace to pay her remaining balance within forty-eight hours or surrender the room.
Liam read the date twice.
Christmas Eve.
A printed code appeared near the bottom.
Richard Vale’s department code.
Liam raised his eyes.
Richard set his glass on a side table with exaggerated care.
“Those notices are automated.
I don’t personally review every delinquent tenant.”
Grace looked down at Noah.
“I’m not delinquent.”
Richard’s expression hardened.
“The notice says otherwise.”
Grace reached into the envelope and removed three folded receipts.
Her fingers shook, but her voice did not.
“I paid the amount the manager gave me.
The last receipt is from yesterday.”
Liam took them.
Each receipt bore the Marlowe manager’s signature.
Together, they showed that Grace had paid all but a small late fee added after the building’s boiler stopped working.
There was another sheet in the envelope—a handwritten list of dates.
“What is this?” Liam asked.
“Every time I reported the heat,” Grace said.
“The first call was three weeks ago.
The radiators were making noise then.
The second week, they stopped warming the room.
Three nights ago, they went completely cold.”
Richard gave a dismissive breath.
“A handwritten list proves nothing.”
Grace took out her phone.
The screen was cracked at one corner.
She opened a series of saved voice messages and placed the phone on the low table.
The first recording was Grace’s own voice, tired but controlled, giving her room number and explaining that her infant son was coughing in the cold.
The second was the property manager promising to send someone.
The third was a message saying the repair had been postponed because emergency spending had not been approved.
The fourth was colder.
“Management has already explained the situation.
Space heaters are not permitted.
Tenants who are unhappy with the conditions may vacate.”
Ethan moved closer to his father.
Liam’s face had become unreadable.
“Who postponed the spending?” he asked.
Richard loosened his collar.
“Liam, this is not the place to discuss internal property decisions.”
“This is exactly the place.”
The words were quiet, but every person in the dining room heard them.
Richard glanced toward the guests as though expecting support.
No one met his eyes.
He lowered his voice.
“The Marlowe is an underperforming asset.
We approved acquisition plans months ago.
The building was scheduled for renovation after the current tenants were cleared.”
