Chapter 4: The Truth About the House
Margaret stood abruptly.
"You wouldn't have this house without me!"
Daniel calmly placed another folder on the table.
"No."
"My father bought this house."
He opened the documents.
"My parents divorced years before he died."
"He transferred ownership entirely to me."
Margaret stared at the paperwork.
"You've lived here rent-free for eleven years."
Her face lost all color.
"I never told you because I thought someday we'd become a family."
He looked at Emily.
"I kept waiting."
His voice broke for the first time.
"I made my wife pay the price for my hope."
Emily reached for his hand.
He squeezed it tightly.
Then Daniel looked back at his mother.
"You have thirty days to leave."
"You can't throw me out!"
"I already have."
He slid another envelope across the table.
It contained the official eviction notice.
Margaret's hands shook.
For the first time in years...
She had nowhere to hide behind authority.
Because authority had never belonged to her.
May you like
Only fear had.
And fear had finally disappeared.
