Kai sat at his desk, working on a draft of a VTuber avatar to practice and hone his skills when there was a knock on the door.
Bella, lying at the Oathless's feet, raised her head and perked her ears.
"One sec!" he shouted, saving the file and getting up from his chair to open the door.
The man on the other side wore a sharp business suit and held a bulky briefcase. "Good afternoon, Kai."
"Max," the Oathless furrowed his brow. "If you are looking for my sister, she isn't here."
"I know," he sighed at the mention of his wife. "I'm here to see you. May I come in?"
"Sure…" He cleared the entryway, letting his brother-in-law pass. "What is this about?"
Max entered the room that was usually reserved for his wife. "May we sit here?"
Kai nodded and followed along. The room was technically entirely his own now, but he hadn't touched it since the last time his sister was there.
"My company handles Mr. Isaacson's will. I saw your name on his lease and figured I would come meet you in person."
"Okay…" They both sat down, and Bella entered the room, tilting her head at the stranger.
"Sam Isaacson, John's closest relative, is due to inherit this apartment, along with the rest of his belongings, and he wants to sell. Since the lease wasn't renewed… your contract expires by the end of the week."
"What?!" His jaw dropped, though now that the lawyer had mentioned it, he recalled talking about it with John… the day he died. "You… you can't just kick me out, I need time to—"
"I know. You can consider this your thirty days' notice, that should give you enough time to find somewhere else to live."
Kai took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. Bella came close, resting her head on his lap.
"There's one more thing…" Max pursed his lips, bracing for another outburst. "The dog."
"Bella?" Kai asked, and her head rose at the mention of her name. "What about her?"
"She is John's property and, therefore, will be inherited by Sam."
"You're gonna take her away…" He scowled. "Who is this Sam person, anyway?"
"John's distant nephew—not that it matters."
"It matters to me," his voice pitched.
"Listen—"
"No, you listen!" He stood up. "Did this guy ever even see her before? Does he even know she exists?"
"That's immaterial. Pets are property, Kai. That's the law."
"Screw the law!"
Max stiffened, trying to maintain his cool. "You don't have to like it, but you do have to follow it. If you refuse to give her away to her rightful owner, Sam may choose to take legal action—go to the police. You may even face jail time."
The statement struck the Oathless cold, chilling his fury, and he slumped back down on the couch. Bella stared at him, distress and confusion on her face. Kai wondered how much of it she understood.
He patted her head, trying to console her… to console himself. Her fate depended entirely on the whim of some stranger, and there was nothing he could do about it. Something, He shut his eyes, his mind racing. There must be something.
A moment later, an idea occurred to him, and he turned to Max. "What if I sue for custody?"
The lawyer's eyebrow went up. "On what grounds?"
"On the grounds that he is a stranger to her and I'm not, and that I've been taking care of her since John died… and even before that, I've been walking her while he was injured."
Max cupped his chin, thinking. "Can you prove any of that?"
"Yes… I have at least two witnesses I can call on."
Max shook his head. "I can't give you legal advice. Besides the clear conflict of interest, I don't know much about pet custody trials… It might come down to the judge." He got up. "I will speak to Sam. If he doesn't care much for the dog, we might be able to resolve this without a trial."
Kai rose after him. "I guess that's the best I can hope for," he escorted the lawyer out.
"By the way…" Max stopped at the doorway. "I know you and your father aren't on the best of terms, but… you should go see him. He doesn't have long."
The Oathless blinked. "What are you talking about? Last time I saw him, they said his condition was stable."
"When was that?"
Kai fell silent, doing the calculation… It had been over a month.
"His situation deteriorated a couple of weeks ago…" The lawyer narrowed his eyes. "Did your sister not tell you?"
The Oathless frowned.
"That damned woman," Max muttered under his breath. "I'll send you the details of where he is staying… You should visit, if nothing else, then to say goodbye."
"Yeah…" he nodded. "I will."
***
A day later, Kai entered his father's hospital room and frowned. Dawson Holloway lay on the hospital bed, cords and wires connecting him to machines and pumping him full of chemicals. His hair was messy and thin, his beard unkempt, his cheeks hollowed. He looked nothing like the sharp, savvy businessman he used to be.
"Hi, Dad," Kai said meekly, unnerved by the state of the old man.
"What are you doing here?" Emi sighed. She sat beside her father, bags under her eyes.
"I guess… I am here to say goodbye."
"Kai…" Dawson rasped. "Come here."
The Oathless stepped closer and sat beside his father.
"Look at us," he lifted two sickly, bony arms. "How did things go so wrong?"
Some answers came to mind, but Kai kept them to himself.
"We should have been working together, you and I, father and son, expanding the business, continuing the family legacy. Instead… here we are."
The Oathless lowered his head.
"But it doesn't have to end this way," Dawson reached, and grabbed his son's hand. "You are still young; you can go back to school, finish your degree. I have people who could guide you, help you follow in my footsteps, and claim your rightful place at the company."
"Dad…" he sighed. "That's not what I want."
"No…" he squeezed his son's hand, then threw it away. "You want to sit in your room, play games all day, and draw cartoons for a living." He let out a wet, guttural cough, and Emi rose to pull the blanket higher over his chest. "That kind of life will get you nowhere. You should listen to me for once and do as I say."
Kai shook his head. "I'm not gonna change for you, Dad. I'm only starting to figure out who I want to be, and I think… if I continue on this path… I might actually be happy."
"Happy?" The old man made a wet laugh, which turned into a cough. "You don't deserve to be happy. I made a difference in this world." He stabbed his thumb at his chest. "I raised a family, built an empire. When I was your age, I had my face on top of billboards! What have you done?"
The Oathless tightened up and kept silent, bearing the insult. His life hasn't amounted to much so far, but maybe in the future… No, he thought. He'll never be proud of my art, no matter what I do.
"I know I am a disappointment to you, Dad…" he said. "But you should know, the feeling is mutual."
Emi gave him a nasty glare, and Dawson narrowed his eyes. "I gave you everything you ever needed," he said.
"Yeah… you paid the bills… but you never actually listened, or cared about my interests, about what I want."
"Oh, I listened… but what you want isn't what's good for you. I was trying to make you strong, successful—"
"Happy?" Kai asked, and his father paused, hesitating, mouth open. Then a thought occurred to the Oathless, and he furrowed his brow. "Are you happy?"
Dawson pursed his lips, shut his eyes, and sighed deeply. "I used to be."
They all fell silent, heads lowered.
The old man took Kai's hand again, then his daughter's, and squeezed them tight. "I wish your mother were here…" he said.
"Last time I spoke to her…" Emi choked. "We fought. I can't even remember over what… We were always fighting over nonsense. I wish I had the chance to…" She trailed off.
"Yeah…" Kai said. "I miss her too."
They spent another silent moment together, holding hands.
"Look, Dad, you don't have to worry about me…" The Oathless pulled away. "I might never be as successful as you are, but I can stand on my own two feet, find my own path." He smiled. "I'll be fine."
Dawson let out a deep sigh, letting go of all his hard-held expectations for his son. "I hope you are right," he patted him on the shoulder and glanced between his two children. "In the end… I just want you both to be happy."