Patricia screamed.
“This is her fault!”
I looked at her.
“No, Patricia. This is what consequences look like.”
She rushed toward me, but Lena stepped between us.
Melissa handed Patricia another document.
“You should read that.”
“What is it?”
“Notice to vacate.”
Patricia blinked.
I smiled faintly.
“The guesthouse you’ve been living in rent-free belongs to my trust too.”
Her mouth opened.
Nothing came out.
For the first time since I’d met that family, none of them had anything to say.
The marriage was annulled six weeks later.
Derek eventually pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault and attempted financial fraud after investigators recovered emails showing that he and Patricia had planned to access my assets after the wedding. He received probation, mandatory counseling, restitution, and a criminal record that cost him his finance job.
Patricia avoided criminal charges but lost the guesthouse, the luxury car I’d been paying for, and the lifestyle she had assumed would last forever.
