---- Chapter 23 The collapse was swift and brutal. Thorne Sustainable Tech, once touted as LA's next big thing, imploded within days. Creditors called. Employees resigned. The office space was repossessed. Michael was left with nothing but debt and the bitter taste of failure. He tried to call Liv, again and again, but her number remained disconnected. He called Elizabeth, but her assistant politely informed him that Mrs. Hayes was unavailable. Indefinitely. The depth of Liv's resolve, her complete and utter severance from his life, finally began to sink in. His panic escalated into irrationality. He drove to their old house, the one the bank was now threatening to foreclose on, half-expecting to find Liv there, waiting to tell him it was all a terrible joke. The house was cold, empty, echoing with his despair. As he stood in the silent living room, Serena walked in, carrying Mikey. She looked around at the bare spaces, the packing boxes Michael had started to fill with his meager remaining possessions. ---- "Well," she said, her voice devoid of sympathy. "This is a disaster." "You think?" Michael snapped, his patience gone. "Don't take it out on me," Serena said, shifting Mikey on her hip. "This is Olivia's fault. She did this to us." Her attempt to deflect blame, her vindictive tone, it grated on him. For the first time, he saw her not as a victim, not as a devoted partner, but as someone grasping, manipulative. "Olivia wouldn't have done anything if | hadn't..." He trailed off, unable to voice the full extent of his betrayal. "If you hadn't what? Fallen in love with me?" Serena challenged, her eyes hard. "Don't you dare get sentimental now, Michael. We have a child to think about." He looked at her, truly looked at her, and a wave of disappointment washed over him. This was the woman he had risked everything for? This grasping, shrewish creature? He remembered Liv's quiet strength, her genuine kindness, even in the face of his cruelty. A profound, soul-crushing regret began to take root. He had made a catastrophic mistake. And he was only just beginning to understand the price. He fired his last remaining employee, a young intern, with a snarl, taking out his frustration on the innocent. The intern, shocked, simply gathered her things and left, leaving Michael alone in the ruins of his ambition.