The payment arrived Thursday.
A day early.
Maya stared at the notification on her phone for a long moment. Then she put it face down on the bed and sat there.
Carney had said tomorrow. The fact that it came early wasn't generosity. It was a message. He moved when he decided to move, not when he said he would. She was already on his timeline whether she'd agreed to it or not.
She picked the phone back up and checked the amount.
It matched the card exactly.
She set it down again.
She gave her notice at Brio that afternoon.
Derek looked at her across the service station. "Personal reasons or did you find something else?"
"Something else," Maya said.
He nodded. "Two weeks?"
"If that works."
"It works." He went back to his clipboard. "You'd gotten better, for what it's worth."
Maya
