liens, replaced her roof after a bad storm, and carried that entire loan for three years without ever once collecting a payment.
Several relatives called me directly after that. The first two accused me of pure revenge. The third asked whether I’d consider forgiving the loan entirely if the family issued some kind of public apology. The fourth suggested, with a straight face, that I simply transfer full ownership of the house over to Madison.
After that call, Nina redirected all family communication through her office exclusively.
Eleanor eventually accepted a sale arranged through the loan servicer. Once the mortgage, the back taxes, and my secured debt were all paid off, she had just enough left over to rent a small apartment outside Fredericksburg.
She called it humiliation. For the first time in years, though, she was finally living within an amount she could actually afford.
Four months after the reunion, Richard and I sat down for divorce mediation in Richmond. He walked in with two attorneys flanking him. Bankruptcy hadn’t softened his sense of entitlement one bit. He demanded half the value of my investment account, continued health insurance coverage, spousal support, and full ownership of the house we’d lived in together.
