Chapter 8 - Veronica Had Done This Once Before
Preston’s late father, Richard Caldwell, had left behind personal journals.
Amelia never expected them to matter.
Then Preston’s older cousin gave copies to her attorney.
Richard had written about Veronica’s financial behavior years earlier.
Not criminal theft.
Control.
She repeatedly encouraged Richard to move personal property into family entities she could influence.
She pressured him to guarantee loans for relatives.
She described refusing as selfish.
One passage read:
Veronica treats boundaries as proof of disloyalty. If someone says no to money, she hears rejection of family.
Amelia sat with that sentence for a long time.
That was exactly what happened to her.
Refuse collateral?
Disrespectful.
Question documents?
Ungrateful.
Protect premarital property?
Outsider.
Resist physical domination?
Know your place.
The spray bottle was shocking.
But the logic behind it had existed for decades.
May you like
Money was merely the language Veronica used to decide who belonged above whom.
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