Chapter 7 - The Final Walkthrough
By the second week, the Brookfield property was officially off the market, bought by a young orthopedic surgeon and his growing family who were eager to move into the quiet neighborhood before the school year started.
Which meant my family's final countdown had reached its zero hour.
Moving day was scheduled for a crisp, overcast Wednesday. I didn't go over there to help them pack—frankly, after Tessa's death threats and my mother's performance on the front lawn, my presence would have only caused another riot. Instead, I hired a professional moving crew at my own expense, purely to ensure they actually got their possessions out of the house so the new owners could take possession on schedule.
Around 2:00 PM, Melissa called me with the final status report.
"Ian, the movers just finished loading the last truck," Melissa said, sounding relieved. "Your parents are gone. The keys have been handed over to me, and the locks are being re-keyed as we speak."
"Did Tessa try to put anything on fire on her way out?" I asked half-seriously.
"No, but she did leave a parting gift," Melissa laughed. "She spray-painted 'I HOPE YOU CHOKE ON YOUR MORTGAGE' inside the garage on the drywall."
I sobbed. "Send me photos of the damage. We'll deduct it from whatever security deposit they didn't have."
"Way ahead of you," Melissa replied. "See you at the closing table on Friday."
That evening, Clare and I stood out on our own back patio, watching the sun set behind the trees. The air smelled like damp earth and approaching autumn. Clare rested her hands over her very pregnant belly, letting out a long, contented sigh.
"It's finally over, isn't it?" she asked softly, leaning her head against my shoulders.
"It's over," I confirmed, wrapping my arms around her. "They're out of the house. They're standing on their own two feet—or at least, they're finally being forced to try."
"Your father called me this morning," Clare mentioned casually.
Iened stiff slightly. "He called you? What did he say?"
"He didn't yell. He didn't make excuses," Clare said, her voice gentle. "He just... he called to apologize. He said he was sorry about the shoe incident. He said he was sorry for never standing up for me."
May you like
I raised an eyebrow, truly surprised. "An apology from my father? That's rarer than a unicorn sighting."
"People only change when you take away their safety net, Ian," Clare smiled, kissing my cheek. "You didn't just save our sanity. You might have actually saved your family from themselves."
