Chapter 33 - The Remnants of Mercer Manor
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A month later, I received a call from Apex Holdings—the real estate development firm that had purchased the foreclosed Mercer Manor at the county auction.
The senior partner, a gentleman named Arthur Pendelton, invited me to meet him at the estate grounds.
I drove out to the suburban property on a crisp November afternoon.
The grand mansion looked even worse than before. The manicured lawns were overgrown with tall weeds, the driveway was cracked, and blue tarps covered sections of the roof where water had leaked through.
Mr. Pendelton walked down the front steps to greet me, holding a set of rolled-up architectural blueprints.
"Ms. Miller," Pendelton said, shaking my hand warmly. "Thank you for coming. We reviewed the original property title deeds during our survey last week. We discovered a historical covenant attached to the land."
I raised an eyebrow. "What kind of covenant?"
"When Arthur Mercer bought this land thirty years ago, he registered a secondary right-of-refusal option," Pendelton explained, unrolling the blueprints on the hood of his car. "If the primary residence ever fell into foreclosure, the deed allowed a certified non-profit or restructuring trust to purchase the entire six-acre parcel back from the developer at original land cost—just four hundred thousand dollars."
I looked at the grand, crumbling mansion where Vivian had stood over me on her knees, where she had demanded my submission, where Daniel had looked at the floor.
"You're telling me I can buy this entire property for four hundred thousand dollars?" I asked.
"You are the only person legally entitled to exercise that option, Ms. Miller," Pendelton smiled. "So... what do you want to do with Mercer Manor?"
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I looked up at the stone pillars, a brilliant, beautiful idea forming in my mind.
"I'm going to tear it down," I said.
