Chapter 10 - The Easter Dinner
The FBI agents spent the next three hours clearing every inch of my property, documenting the massive scope of Daniel's fraud.
They hauled out the illegal servers from the basement, securing all the evidence needed to put Daniel and Vanessa away for decades.
Judge Ellen Pierce made a few phone calls to her colleagues, ensuring the fraudulent Cayman Islands deed was immediately frozen and reversed.
By the time the sun began to rise on Easter morning, my house was finally quiet, secure, and entirely mine again.
The power company arrived shortly after dawn to repair the cut lines, flooding my beautiful home with warm, welcoming light.
I stood in the kitchen, sweeping up the shattered glass from Vanessa's dropped champagne flute.
Ellen sat at the granite island, sipping a cup of freshly brewed coffee with a weary but triumphant smile.
"The police caught Richard trying to board a flight to Mexico," Ellen announced, reading a text message on her phone.
"They are charging him with extortion and violating a decades-old restraining order."
I smiled, tossing the broken glass into the trash can and tying off the bag.
"It seems the trash has finally taken itself out," I replied, feeling lighter than I had in years.
Later that afternoon, the doorbell rang, but this time, it was not the police or a criminal syndicate.
It was my loyal housekeeper, Maria, whom Vanessa had unjustly fired weeks ago.
Maria rushed into the kitchen and threw her arms around me, tears of joy streaming down her face.
Together, Maria, Ellen, and I spent the afternoon cooking the exact Easter dinner I had originally planned.
We set the table with my favorite antique porcelain, completely ignoring the tacky gold plates Vanessa had rented.
We laughed, drank good wine, and celebrated the return of peace to my sanctuary.
The nightmare was officially over, and the people who had tried to destroy me were locked in cold, concrete cells.
After dinner, I decided to go upstairs and clear out the guest bedroom where Daniel and Vanessa had been staying.
I wanted every trace of their toxic presence removed from my house before I went to sleep.
I packed Vanessa's expensive clothes into cheap garbage bags and dragged them out to the curb under the moonlight.
As I walked back into the empty guest bedroom, I noticed a small, black device plugged into the wall outlet behind the nightstand.
It was a hidden, wireless audio transmitter, and its tiny green light was actively blinking.
May you like
I reached down and unplugged it, but before I could throw it away, a chilling, mechanical voice crackled through the device's tiny speaker.
"You took my money, Margaret, and the cartel always collects its debts."
