“Mom, come on. You’re overreacting. Changing the locks. We’re your family. We just wanted to help.”
“You wanted a free beach house for your in-laws, David?” I stated, cutting through his excuses. “You let your wife tear apart my kitchen, move my belongings into a closet, and tried to foot me with the bill. I’m not angry, David. I’m just done.”
Sarah stomped over to the kitchen island, which was miraculously still standing, and snatched up her designer purse.
“Fine, if you’re going to be this selfish, we’ll just leave. We’ll stay at a hotel until you come to your senses and apologize.”
“You won’t be staying at a hotel on my dime,” I reminded her.
Sarah sneered, pulling out her own debit card.
“David has a job, Hannah. We don’t need your money.”
She tapped furiously on her phone, booking a room at the local resort.
5 minutes later, her face went completely pale.
She typed again.
Then she looked up, panic setting in.
“David,” she hissed. “Why is our joint account empty?”
I didn’t smile, but I felt a deep sense of satisfaction.
I knew David’s paycheck hadn’t cleared yet, and they lived paycheck to paycheck to fund Sarah’s lifestyle.
Without my emergency card as their backup, they had absolutely nothing.
David pulled out his phone, frantically checking his banking app.
His shoulders slumped.
“The mortgage payment went through yesterday. We have $34 in checking.”
Sarah whipped around to glare at me.
“You did this. You planned this to ruin us.”
“I simply stopped paying for your mistakes,” I corrected her.
I walked into the hallway, grabbed a stack of flattened cardboard boxes Greg’s crew had brought in for debris, and dropped them at David’s feet.
“I suggest you start packing your things. Since there’s no kitchen and no master bed, this house is unlivable for you anyway.”
“Where are we supposed to go?” David asked, his voice cracking slightly.