Chapter 3 - The Confrontation in the Foyer
Evan let out a harsh, arrogant laugh, though his eyes darted nervously toward the street where two neighbors were standing near their mailboxes, watching the commotion.
"Are you out of your mind, Margaret?" Evan sneered, crossing his arms over his silk robe. "Delilah abandoned this home three days ago. She’s mentally unstable, and frankly, so are you if you think you can barge in here with a handyman and make demands."
Before I could speak, a raspy, nicotine-stained voice echoed from the grand staircase inside.
"What's all this racket, Evan?"
Brenda Mercer descended the stairs slowly, wearing a plush leopard-print bathrobe, her dyed blonde hair pinned up sloppily. She stopped at the bottom step, holding a lit cigarette between two thin fingers, her sharp blue eyes scanning the foyer until they landed on Delilah.
A cruel, victorious smirk spread across Brenda’s face.
"Well, well, well," Brenda drawled, blowing a cloud of gray smoke into the clean air of the foyer. "Look who came crawling back. Couldn't even last three days in the cold, could you, Delilah? Did you bring your mother to fight your battles for you?"
Delilah shrank back slightly, her hand reaching for my coat sleeve. I stepped forward, putting my body squarely between my daughter and Brenda.
"Hank, finish changing the lock," I told the locksmith calmly. "Install a keyless digital keypad on the front and back doors."
"Don't you dare touch that door!" Brenda shrieked, dropping her cigarette into a nearby decorative vase and marching toward us. "This is our house! Margaret signed the deed over to Evan six months ago! We have the paperwork!"
"You have a forged document," I said, pulling out a color copy of the fake deed from my handbag and snapping it open in front of her face. "Signed by a fake notary public named Arthur Vance—who happens to be your second cousin in Indiana, Brenda."
Brenda’s smirk faltered for a fraction of a second, her pupils dilating with sudden tension.
"You think you're clever, don't you?" Evan interrupted, stepping between me and his mother. "It doesn't matter what you claim about the deed, Margaret. Delilah is my wife. This is the marital residence. You can't just kick us out without an eviction order, which takes six months in Franklin County."
"Actually, Evan," I replied, pulling a second document from my bag, "I spoke with Judge Harrison’s clerk at the Municipal Court at seven o'clock this morning. Because I am the sole deed holder and you have paid zero rent in five years, and because I have filed an emergency police report for forgery, title fraud, and grand larceny..."
I paused, leaning in close to Evan so only he could hear my next words.
"...the sheriff's deputies are turning onto your street right now."
As if on cue, the red-and-blue lights of two Franklin County Sheriff cruisers flashed through the front window glass, their sirens giving a soft yip-yip as they pulled into the driveway behind Hank’s locksmith van.
Brenda’s face drained of color. "Evan... what is she talking about?"
Two uniformed deputies walked up the porch steps, their hands resting casually near their belts.
"Margaret Vance?" the lead deputy asked, checking a clipboard.
"I’m Margaret Vance," I said, handing him my driver's license and the original property deed bearing the county seal. "These two individuals are unlawfully occupying my property based on a forged title transfer. I am requesting an immediate trespass removal."
Evan stepped forward, his voice rising into a panicked pitch. "Officer! This is a domestic dispute! My wife abandoned the home, and her mother is trying to illegally evict us!"
The deputy looked at the original deed, then looked at Evan. "Mr. Mercer, is your name on this original property title?"
"No, but—"
"Is your name on any lease agreement signed by Ms. Vance?"
"No, but I'm married to her daughter!"
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The deputy turned to me. "Ms. Vance, do you want these individuals off the premises?"
"I want them off my land immediately," I said firmly. "They have fifteen minutes to gather their clothes. Anything else left behind will be impounded as evidence in an ongoing fraud investigation."
