Chapter 4 - The Art of Total Eviction
The next hour was a whirlwind of chaos and suppressed rage.
Two large men from the moving company arrived,
carrying cardboard boxes and packing tape.
Demi stood by the door,
her arms crossed,
watching as they emptied the life she had shared with a ghost.
Philip was frantically throwing clothes into a suitcase,
his face red with exertion and shame.
Glenda was sitting on the sofa,
refusing to move,
clutching a porcelain cat as if it were a holy relic.
"I’m calling my lawyer!"
Glenda screamed at the movers.
"This is illegal!
You’re stealing my belongings!"
The movers didn't even look at her,
they just kept working with the efficiency of robots.
Demi walked over to the sofa and looked down at her mother-in-law.
"Your lawyer won't help you,
Glenda,"
she said,
her voice calm.
"Because your son never actually put you on any of the paperwork."
"You’ve been a guest here,
nothing more."
"And as of ten minutes ago,
your guest status has been revoked."
Philip came out of the bedroom,
hauling two heavy bags.
"This isn't over,
Demi,"
he spat,
his eyes burning with hatred.
"I’ll take you for everything you’ve got in the divorce."
"With what money?"
Demi asked,
tilting her head.
"You haven't had a job in nearly two years."
"Your 'consulting' firm is a shell that has been bleeding money."
"Money that,
by the way,
you took from our savings without my permission."
"My attorney is calling it financial infidelity."
"You’ll be lucky if you don't end up in jail for fraud,
let alone getting a settlement."
Philip stopped in his tracks,
the reality of his situation finally sinking in.
He had thought he was the smart one,
the one in control.
He had thought Demi was too soft,
too maternal,
too busy saving lives to notice he was ruining hers.
But she had been watching.
She had been recording.
She had been waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
"The blonde woman,"
Demi said,
her voice dropping low.
"I wonder if she’ll still want you when she finds out you’re broke."
"I wonder if she’ll let Glenda move into her house."
Philip looked at his mother,
who was now sobbing into her hands.
He knew the answer to that question.
The woman at Lake Placid was looking for a sugar daddy,
not a middle-aged man with a dependent mother and a mountain of legal debt.
"Get up,
Mom,"
Philip said,
his voice cracking.
"We’re leaving."
"But my things!"
Glenda wailed.
"The movers will drop them off at a storage unit,"
Demi said,
handing Philip a key.
"I’ve paid for one month."
"After that,
it’s your responsibility."
"If you ever set foot on this property again,
I have a restraining order ready to be served."
She stepped aside,
clearing the path to the door.
Philip grabbed his mother’s arm,
hoisting her up with more force than necessary.
They walked toward the exit,
a pathetic procession of defeat.
As they reached the threshold,
Philip turned back one last time.
"You’re a cold-hearted bitch,
Demi,"
he said.
"No,
Philip,"
she replied,
leaning against the doorframe.
"I’m just a woman who finally learned her own value."
"And it’s a price you could never afford."
She slammed the door shut,
the sound echoing through the now-quiet apartment.
She turned the deadbolt,
the click of the lock sounding like the final note of a symphony.
She was alone.
May you like
And for the first time in her life,
she felt completely safe.
