Chapter 4 - The Eviction
Vanessa hung up the phone and turned to face Todd, who was suddenly looking incredibly smug again.
"You heard her, Vanessa," Todd gloated, stepping closer to her.
"The house is in a trust now, which means I have just as much legal right to be here as you do."
David shook his head, refusing to let the bully win the argument.
"A fraudulent transfer is void the moment we prove the signature was forged."
Todd pulled a folded piece of paper from his back pocket and shoved it against David's chest.
"Well, you can argue that in court next month, but today, I have this."
David unfolded the paper, his eyes scanning the legal jargon rapidly.
Vanessa watched her lawyer's expression change from confident to deeply concerned.
"What is it, David?" she asked, her pulse quickening.
"It is an emergency civil injunction signed by Judge Harrison," David replied slowly.
"It grants Todd and Melissa a temporary stay of residence for thirty days while the property dispute is investigated."
Todd grinned, looking like a man who had just won the lottery.
"Harrison plays golf with my dad every Sunday," Todd bragged openly.
"You can't kick us out, you can't stop the renovation, and you have to leave us alone."
Melissa stopped crying and wiped her face, suddenly looking incredibly relieved.
"We really didn't want it to get this ugly, Vanessa, but we are a family and we have to stick together."
Vanessa looked at her sister, realizing Melissa was completely brainwashed by the men in her life.
"You are destroying my home for a cryptocurrency scam," Vanessa said flatly.
Frank, Todd's silent father, finally spoke up from the living room.
"It is perfectly legal, little lady, so I suggest you pack your bags and head back to that hotel."
Vanessa did not yell, scream, or throw a tantrum.
She simply turned to her lawyer and nodded.
"Let's go, David."
They walked out of the house and got into Vanessa's car, shutting out the sound of Todd's triumphant laughter.
"They have the upper hand legally until we can get a handwriting expert to invalidate the deed," David warned.
Vanessa gripped the steering wheel, staring at her ruined house through the windshield.
"I am not waiting thirty days, David."
She picked up her phone and dialed the number of the private security firm she had contacted the night before.
"Send the team," Vanessa instructed the voice on the other end.
"I want absolute perimeter lockdown."
David looked at her nervously as three unmarked black SUVs rolled onto the street.
"Vanessa, what are you doing?"
Vanessa smiled, a cold, calculated curve of her lips.
May you like
"They have a legal right to be inside the house, David, but they don't have a legal right to use my electricity, my water, or my internet."
She pulled out her phone and opened her utility management apps, shutting off every single service to the property.
