“Okay. I’ll tell the judge everything I heard. Because you took care of me and Mommy when Daddy left, and now I want to help take care of you.”

As I tucked Emily into bed that night, I marveled at the eight-year-old who’d become my most powerful ally in fighting a battle I’d never wanted to face. She’d observed adult deception with clear eyes, remembered details that would prove crucial to my case, and chosen to protect me despite her natural loyalty to her grandfather. Some families, I was learning, were held together not by blood or law, but by people who chose to do the right thing, even when the right thing was difficult. And some eight-year-olds had more integrity than the adults who thought children weren’t paying attention to conversations that would determine everyone’s future.

Tomorrow, Emily would help me prove that Robert’s financial betrayal had been even more extensive and deliberate than we’d initially understood. But tonight, I would be grateful for a granddaughter who’d chosen truth over convenience, protection over politics, and love over loyalty to someone who’d proven he didn’t deserve it.

The day before our court hearing, Patricia Williams called with news that made my stomach flutter with nervous anticipation.

“Mrs. Gillian, the forensic accountant has completed the asset investigation, and the results are extraordinary. Your husband didn’t just hide money from you. He built an entire financial empire while you were unaware it existed.”

“What kind of empire?”

“Offshore accounts totaling between $1.2 and $2 million, three investment properties in Florida, a vacation home in Colorado, and stock portfolios worth approximately $800,000. All purchased or funded with marital assets that he systematically moved into accounts with only his name attached.”

I sat down heavily in my kitchen chair, trying to process numbers that seemed impossible given my understanding of our financial situation.

“Patricia, how is that possible? I managed our household budget. I would have noticed if hundreds of thousands of dollars were disappearing from our accounts.”

“He was very sophisticated about it. Small transfers over time, redirected dividends, investment gains that were reinvested into hidden accounts rather than reported to you. Mrs. Gillian, your husband spent years systematically stealing your marital assets while convincing you that you didn’t understand financial management well enough to be involved in investment decisions.”

“And Emily’s testimony about the property purchase?”

“The Florida house is real. Purchased 18 months ago for $650,000 using a loan application with your forged signature as co-borrower. Sharon Patterson—that’s your husband’s girlfriend’s full name—is listed as the intended resident, but your name is on all the legal documents.”

Sharon Patterson. Even her name felt like a betrayal, proof that while I’d been planning our 43rd anniversary celebration, Robert had been building a future with another woman using money he’d stolen from me.

“What happens at tomorrow’s hearing?”

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