Chapter 6 - The Exit StrategyThe silence in the dining room was heavy and suffocating.
Uncle Arthur was the first to move. Without a single word, he gripped his leather briefcase, motioned for his two sons, and practically dragged the notary lady out of the apartment. The door clicked shut behind them, leaving only the immediate Cole family standing in the wreckage of their scheme.
"You're insane," Tabitha hissed, her voice trembling with rage as she looked down at the red wine stain spreading across my beige rug. "You set us up! You invited us here just to humiliate us!"
"I didn't invite you, Tabitha," I corrected calmly, leaning back in my chair. "You forced your way in. You brought dogs into my home without asking, drank my graduation wine, and planned to steal my house."
"Steal?!" Lorraine shrieked, taking a step toward me, her knuckles white as she clutched her handbag. "We are family! Garrett is your husband! Everything in this apartment—this entire life you have—exists because my son married you!"
"Mother, stop," Garrett said, his voice barely a whisper. He was still staring at the legal notice from Elena Ruiz in his hands.
"Don't tell me to stop!" Lorraine rounded on her son, her eyes bulging. "Look at what she’s doing to you! She’s treating you like a roommate! She’s taking away your money!"
"It was never his money, Lorraine," I said, standing up smoothly from the head of the table. "Garrett contributed twelve percent to our joint expenses over the last two years. The remaining forty-seven thousand dollars he took was my sweat, my overnight code deploys, and my stock options."
I looked at my watch. It was 7:45 PM.
"You have thirty minutes to pack your bags and leave," I said, looking between Lorraine and Tabitha.
"You can't kick my family out!" Garrett finally shouted, his face flushing dark red as his pride tried to reassert itself. "This is my home too, Maya! I live here!"
"You live here because I permit it," I said, meeting his glare with absolute stillness. "Your mother and sister do not live here. If they are not out of my condo by eight-fifteen, I will press the concierge button and have building security escort them to the street for trespassing."
"You wouldn't dare," Lorraine spat.
I reached out and placed my hand over the wall-mounted security intercom.
May you like
Lorraine gasped, clutching her neck. "Unbelievable. She is utterly heartless."
"Ten minutes, Lorraine," I said, my voice dropping an octave, cold and unyielding. "I suggest you start with the pantry."
