Chapter 16 - The New HorizonThree years after the divorce, Lawson Enterprise Solutions had expanded into three new regional markets, opening offices in Austin, San Denver, and Seattle. My firm was no longer just a prominent Arizona tech consulting firm; we were a recognized force in enterprise software infrastructure across the Southwest.
Despite the corporate growth, my favorite day of every quarter remained the Foundation Summit.
Every three months, the scholars funded by the Lawson Women in Tech Foundation gathered at our Phoenix headquarters for a day of panel discussions, one-on-one executive mentorship, and networking. What had begun as a modest initiative funded by three converted rental properties in Mesa had grown into a fully endowed non-profit, attracting corporate matching grants from major cloud providers.
I sat at the head of the third-floor glass boardroom, listening to Elena Vance—a brilliant twenty-two-year-old senior from Chandler—present her senior thesis on distributed ledger security.
"And because of the research stipend provided by the foundation," Elena concluded, her voice confident and ringing through the room, "our team was able to patent the verification protocol last month."
The room erupted into applause. I joined in, watching Elena’s bright, flushed face as she received congratulations from my executive team.
When the morning session broke for lunch, Elena walked over to my seat, holding a small leather notebook.
"Ms. Lawson," she said, her voice filled with genuine warmth. "I just wanted to thank you personally. When I applied for the scholarship three years ago, my family was facing eviction. I almost dropped out to take a retail job. Today, I signed an offer letter to join a cybersecurity firm in Austin as a junior systems architect."
I smiled, standing up to shake her hand. "You earned every bit of it, Elena. You did the work. The foundation just made sure the door stayed unlocked."
"I read about how the foundation started," Elena added softly, looking at me with admiration. "How you turned a personal setback into an endowment for other women. It gave a lot of us the courage to keep fighting when things felt impossible."
Her words touched a place deep inside me that no business trophy or press profile ever could.
As Elena walked over to join her peers at the buffet, Arthur Pendelton stepped into the boardroom, carrying his familiar leather briefcase.
"Incredible group this year, Harper," Arthur said, taking a cup of coffee from the sideboard.
"They're amazing, Arthur," I agreed, looking out across the room. "They make every late night and every legal battle worth it."
Arthur adjusted his wire-rimmed glasses and lowered his voice slightly. "Speaking of legal matters, I received a filing notification from Maricopa County Civil Court this morning."
I tilted my head. "Trent?"
"No," Arthur replied dryly. "Brooke Hayes. Or rather, her court-appointed family law attorney."
"What does she want?"
"She filed a motion to adjust child support arrears against Trent," Arthur explained. "It appears Trent fell six months behind on his garnished payments after losing his night job at the Biltmore. Her attorney attempted to serve a subpoena on Lawson Enterprise Solutions, assuming you two were still somehow financially linked."
I shook my head slowly, letting out a small, weary sigh. "Did you handle it?"
May you like
"My junior associate sent them a formal notice of non-interest and a copy of the three-year-old final divorce decree," Arthur smiled. "They withdrew the motion within twenty minutes. But it seems your ex-husband’s financial spiraling is entering a rather litigious new phase."
"Let them fight their own battles, Arthur," I said smoothly, turning back to the room full of bright, ambitious young women. "We have a future to build."
Related Stories
