Gavin stepped out first and stretched his arms after the long flight. Patricia adjusted her coat proudly while Brianna began filming again for her social media audience.
Then they noticed the sign on the lawn.
It no longer said the house was available for purchase.
The sign simply said SOLD.
Gavin walked to the door and inserted his key but the lock did not move. My phone began vibrating almost immediately with incoming messages.
Gavin wrote, “What did you do?”
Brianna sent another message saying, “This is insane.”
Patricia called repeatedly while saying, “Open the door immediately because we have nowhere else to go.”
For the first time in years I allowed myself to wait before answering.
Then I sent one message that said, “You used my money to travel on my birthday and I used my property to protect myself, so from now on any communication will happen through my attorney.”
I watched Gavin read the message through the camera feed. The color drained from his face while Brianna slowly lowered her phone.
Patricia knocked angrily on the door as if reality owed her obedience.
That evening I experienced something I had not felt in a long time.
Peace.