Chapter 7 - The Ultimatum
Over the next two weeks, the manipulation tactics escalated. First came the flying monkeys—extended relatives calling to tell me I was tearing the family apart. I simply sent them copies of the property tax bills and told them if they cared so much, they could pay the $4,000 monthly mortgage. Unsurprisingly, the calls stopped immediately.
Then came the bargaining. Mom sent a long, handwritten letter, promising to buy Emma and Noah the biggest, most expensive gifts they had ever seen. She promised they would be front-and-center in all the photos. She promised Brent would apologize.
It was pathetic. She wasn't apologizing for her behavior; she was trying to buy her house back with cheap promises.
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I wrote a single sentence on a sticky note, attached it to her letter, and mailed it back to her: “Children have to learn that actions have consequences.”
By day twenty, the realization had fully set in for them. The house was already listed on the market. Potential buyers were touring it, walking past Mom’s beloved antique furniture and Dad’s sports memorabilia. The empire they had built on my dime was crumbling, and there was absolutely nothing they could do to stop it.
