Chapter 8 - THE HOUSE GRANT STOLE
The following afternoon, my grandfather’s attorneys entered our apartment with a court order.
Grant had changed the locks while I was unconscious.
He had instructed the building manager to deny me access.
He had also removed family photographs, nursery furniture, and several pieces of jewelry that had belonged to my mother.
Vanessa’s clothing filled half of the primary bedroom.
She had not waited for the divorce.
She had already moved into my home.
Investigators photographed everything.
In the nursery, they found boxes packed with Noah and Elise’s belongings.
Each box had been labeled for donation.
Their cribs had been dismantled.
Their blankets were stuffed into plastic bags.
The rocking chair my grandfather had given me was listed for sale online.
When the photographs reached my hospital room, I could not speak.
Grant had prepared to erase our children before they had even taken their first breath outside an incubator.
My grandfather stood beside the window.
His hands were clasped behind his back.
“I can have every item returned today.”
“I don’t want to go back there.”
“You do not have to.”
I looked at the photograph of the empty nursery.
“That apartment was supposed to be their first home.”
“We will build them another.”
“I don’t want a mansion.”
“Then you will not have one.”
He turned toward me.
“Tell me what you want.”
I thought about it.
“I want somewhere quiet.”
“Done.”
“Close to the hospital.”
“Done.”
“With enough room for medical equipment if they need it.”
“Done.”
“And no staff except the people I choose.”
My grandfather smiled faintly.
“You learned from experience.”
“Yes.”
He sat beside me.
“There is a townhouse across from Beacon Crest’s family rehabilitation center.”
“It belongs to the network?”
“It belongs to me.”
I raised an eyebrow.
He corrected himself.
“It belongs to a holding company I control.”
“Of course it does.”
For the first time in days, we both laughed.
The sound was soft, but it felt important.
Miriam entered shortly afterward.
“The court has temporarily restored your access to all joint assets.”
She handed me a document.
“Grant is prohibited from entering the apartment or selling marital property.”
“He already tried to sell the nursery furniture.”
“That listing is now preserved as evidence.”
“What about my mother’s jewelry?”
“One necklace was found in Vanessa’s suitcase.”
My stomach turned.
“Which one?”
“The pearl pendant.”
My mother had worn it in the only photograph I kept beside my bed.
Vanessa had taken my coat.
She had taken my home.
She had even taken something belonging to the mother I lost when I was fourteen.
Miriam placed another photograph on the table.
The pendant lay beside two airline tickets.
Grant and Vanessa had booked a flight to Zurich.
Departure was scheduled for the following night.
“They were planning to leave,” I said.
“Yes.”
“Before the equipment investigation became public.”
“And before the settlement could be reviewed.”
May you like
My grandfather picked up the photograph.
“Then we should make certain they do not reach the airport.”
