Chapter 10 - The Mistress at the Door
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Before Leona could finish reviewing the last bank statement, the heavy brass knocker on the front door clanged twice through the quiet house.
Leona carefully gathered the financial documents, placed them into her canvas tote bag, locked the oak desk, and walked toward the front hallway.
She pulled open the heavy wooden door.
Valerie stood on the porch, her eyes rimmed with red, her coat crumpled as if she had spent the entire night sleeping in her car outside the hospital.
"Give me his phone," Valerie demanded without greeting, taking an aggressive step toward the doorway. "And his leather briefcase. I know he keeps his company files here."
Leona stood squarely in the center of the threshold, resting one hand on the edge of the doorframe.
"You are trespassing," Leona said coldly.
"I don't care about your little intimidation tactics!" Valerie spat, her voice trembling with rage and exhaustion. "Russell and I are business partners! Half of what he built over the last three years belongs to my company! He was going to leave you next month after Molly’s midterms!"
Leona felt a cool, sharp laugh rise in her throat, though her face remained completely still.
"Is that what he told you?" Leona asked softly. "He's been telling you he was leaving me 'next month' for six years, Valerie. Just like he told me he was working late every Tuesday."
Valerie's eyes flickered with a sudden, sharp doubt. "He loves me! I took care of him!"
"You took one hundred and forty thousand dollars of stolen family money," Leona corrected her, pulling the red folder halfway out of her tote bag so Valerie could see the legal stamps. "And every single transfer bears his signature from our joint account. Which means it is marital property stolen without my consent."
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Valerie went completely pale, her mouth opening slightly as she stared at the official bank stamps.
"If you don't step off my porch in five seconds," Leona said, stepping forward, "my lawyer will be handing these documents directly to the District Attorney."
