Chapter 6 - Everything the Card Had Bought
The consequences reached Daniel’s house before lunch.
The first call came from Vanessa’s car dealership. The monthly payment had failed because it had been charged automatically to the canceled corporate account.
Then the private school contacted them regarding overdue tuition.
The country club suspended their membership.
The household staffing agency requested a new payment method.
The company fuel account stopped working.
The reservation for Vanessa’s upcoming weekend at a luxury spa was canceled.
Daniel’s mortgage payment was not connected directly to the card, but Margaret had been transferring money into his personal account every month to cover it.
She stopped the transfers.
Vanessa stood in their enormous marble kitchen holding a stack of declined-payment notifications.
“She cannot do this.”
Daniel loosened his tie.
“She already did.”
“Then call the bank.”
“It is her account.”
“You said the company would become yours.”
“It was supposed to.”
Vanessa slammed her phone onto the counter.
“My father invited investors because you told him the guarantee was certain.”
“I thought she would sign.”
“You thought humiliating her would make her cooperative?”
Daniel stared at her.
“You gave her a bone.”
“It was a joke.”
“You did it in front of everyone.”
“And you did nothing.”
Neither of them spoke.
For the first time, they were forced to see each other without Margaret’s money smoothing the edges of their marriage.
Vanessa had believed Daniel was a powerful executive waiting to inherit an empire.
Daniel had believed Vanessa’s confidence and social connections would make him appear more successful.
Both had built their lives on an image financed by someone they treated with contempt.
That afternoon, Margaret received twenty-three calls from Daniel.
She did not answer.
Vanessa called eleven times.
Margaret blocked her number.
Later, her eldest grandchild, sixteen-year-old Sophie, called from a friend’s phone.
“Grandma?”
Margaret’s voice softened.
“Hello, sweetheart.”
“Mom says you’re trying to make us homeless.”
“I am not taking the house.”
“But she says we can’t afford it.”
Margaret closed her eyes.
The children were the part she feared most.
“I have paid most of your family’s expenses for years. Your parents must now create a budget based on what they earn.”
“Are you angry with us?”
“No. Never.”
“Will I have to leave school?”
Margaret had already discussed the children with Ellen.
“I will pay your tuition directly to the school until the end of the academic year. After that, we will review what is best.”
Sophie lowered her voice.
“I’m sorry about dinner.”
“You weren’t there.”
“I heard Mom laughing about it before she left. She said she was going to teach you your place.”
Margaret gripped the phone.
“Did your father hear her?”
“Yes.”
“And what did he say?”
“He said you would forgive him because you always do.”
Margaret looked toward Thomas’s photograph on her desk.
May you like
That sentence hurt more than the bone.
“Not this time,” she said.
