Chapter 12
Chapter 12: The Final Envelope
The past rarely surrenders without attempting one last ambush.
It arrived on a Tuesday in the form of a thick, cream-colored envelope, delivered by certified mail. The return address belonged to a high-powered law firm in the city—the firm retained by her ex-husband’s mother, Eleanor.
Arthur placed it on the kitchen island. He didn't try to hide it from her, nor did he hover nervously. He respected her enough to let her handle it.
Ava stared at the envelope. Her pulse ticked up slightly, but her hands remained perfectly still.
She picked up a butter knife, sliced the seal, and pulled out the heavy parchment.
It was a formal threat, wrapped in polite legal jargon. Eleanor was threatening to petition the court for "grandparental visitation rights," claiming that Ava was maliciously alienating Leo from his "rightful heritage." It was a classic manipulation tactic—a thinly veiled attempt to force a line of communication and re-establish control.
Ava read the letter twice.
She didn't cry. She didn't call her lawyer in a panicked frenzy.
She walked over to the administrative paper shredder Arthur kept in the home office. She fed the heavy, expensive parchment into the machine, listening to the mechanical hum as it reduced Eleanor’s arrogance into thin, meaningless strips of waste paper.
She walked back to the kitchen and picked up her phone, dialing her attorney's number.
"Sarah," Ava said, her voice steady and commanding. "I received a letter from Eleanor's counsel. Draft a response. Remind them of the permanent restraining order, and inform them that any further unsolicited contact will be forwarded directly to the district attorney as a violation of that order."
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"Consider it done," her lawyer replied.
Ava hung up. The ghost had tried to reach through the walls, and she had simply closed the window.
