Single Dad Janitor Lost His Job Helping Her — He Never Knew She Was a Billionaire CEO…
The Shadow of Uncertainty
He gathered everything carefully—lipstick, wallet, keys, business cards—and placed them back in the leather bag. One card caught his eye: Catherine Hartwell, Chief Executive Officer, Hartwell Industries.
He’d heard that name before, seen it in the business section of newspapers left behind in the breakroom. Hartwell Industries owned half the buildings in the city, including this one.
He left the bag with building security and went back to his mop. The floor wouldn’t clean itself, and his shift ended at 6:00 a.m. He still had three floors to go.
The next morning, Marcus picked Emma up from his neighbor, Mrs. Rodriguez, who watched her during his night shifts. Emma ran to him with a drawing of a purple dragon, her gap-toothed smile lighting up his exhausted world.
“Daddy, look what I made.”
He scooped her up, breathing in the strawberry scent of her shampoo.
“It’s perfect, sweetheart. Just like you.”
They ate cereal for breakfast because payday wasn’t until Friday. He helped her get ready for school, making sure her secondhand uniform was pressed and her shoes were tied.
As they walked the six blocks to Riverside Elementary, Emma chatted about her upcoming school play and how she wanted to be a doctor when she grew up, just like the ones who tried to help mommy.
Marcus’s heart cracked a little more, the way it always did when she mentioned Sarah.
He was at the laundromat that afternoon, folding their clothes and trying to make seven dollars last for detergent and dryer time when his phone rang.
“Hello, is this Marcus Chen?”
“Yes, this is.”
“Jennifer from Hartwell Industries. We need to speak with you regarding an incident that occurred last night at Heritage Tower. Can you come to our headquarters tomorrow at 2 p.m.?”
Marcus’s stomach dropped. He’d been called to management offices before, usually right before being fired.
He’d lost two jobs in the past year, both times for being unreliable when Emma got sick and he had to miss shifts. No one cared that he was a single father; they only cared about the bottom line.
“I… yes, I can be there.”
“Excellent. Ask for me at reception. Jennifer Wells, Human Resources.”
Human Resources. His hands went cold. They were going to fire him for abandoning his post last night.
Even though it was an emergency, he’d broken protocol, left his floor uncleaned, and interfered with a tenant. Of course, they were firing him.
That night, Emma noticed his distraction.
“Daddy, are you sad?”
He pulled her close on their threadbare couch.
“No baby, just tired.”
“When I’m tired, mommy used to sing to me. Do you remember the song?”
Marcus’s throat tightened, but he sang anyway, his voice rough and off-key.
“You are my sunshine, my only sunshine…”
Emma fell asleep in his arms, and Marcus stayed awake, staring at the water stain on the ceiling, calculating how long he could keep the apartment if he lost this job. Three weeks, maybe four, if he skipped meals. He’d done it before.
