the Sapphire Star in Atlantic City for the first weekend in April caught her attention. The weekend of her birthday. The weekend she spent alone because Chad had a dental conference in Boston that he just couldn’t miss. There were also a couple of restaurant charges in Atlantic City.
Tears welled in her eyes. She'd suspected he cheated on her but she'd never had proof. This hurt like a knife through her heart. Her shoulders drooped under the weight of this new knowledge. She sucked in a deep breath, then blew it out in a huff. This wasn't fair. She couldn't even confront him.
She shook her head, dropped the file folder on the floor and tugged open the wooden file cabinet beside the desk and flipped through the hanging folders. Her eyes drifted to the Insurance folder, but she forced herself to be methodical. The thin Auto folder contained paperwork on the Grand Cherokee, saying he refinanced it in March. That was odd. It would have been paid off in August. She examined the signature on the promissory note. Her signature on the loan papers looked suspiciously like Chad’s receptionist’s writing, round and almost juvenile.
She flipped ahead to the Insurance folder.
Both policies were in the file folder. She pulled his out and skimmed it. When finished, she leaned back against the wall and stretched her protesting legs in front of her. It appeared to be a $250,000 life insurance policy with a clause that said if he died in an accident, the policy paid double. Relief washed over her like a wave. She'd have enough to pay the bills! She'd be able to keep the house!
If the insurance company paid.
The phone jangled and she pushed herself to her feet to answer it, stretching and massaging her tingling legs to restore the blood flow.
She was pleasantly surprised to hear Dana’s voice. “Hey, things are quiet here at the office and Edward said I can take the day off. I’m about to ready to wrap things up at work and head for home – mind if I stop by?”
Andi rolled her shoulders and smiled, “Not at all! I’ve got a couple things I want to talk to you about anyway.”
8
S he sat the insurance policy on top of the desk and returned to the hanging files in the file cabinet again. The file marked “Legal” contained photocopies of their Wills. Chad's small, neat print on the bottom of each indicated that the original was in the safe deposit box at Harbor Regional Bank. She pulled his copy out and laid it on top of the insurance policy, and continued through the files. Just as she was about to close the drawer, a plain manila file folder stuck in the very back of the cabinet caught her eye. The hand-written label simply said, “Will.” She frowned and leaned in to get a closer look. The blue manuscript jacket indicated that it had been drawn up by an attorney in Bangor by the name of Benson Harrington III.
She scanned the document, shocked to discover he specifically excluded her from his estate. Explicitly. He left everything to his trust, and named the attorney as Trustee. She flipped to the last page. The signature was dated only three weeks before.
Why would he do that to her? Had he hated her that much? He was such a perfectionist, so concerned about image. He had told her on more than one occasion that he would never, ever, get a divorce because he did not fail. What changed his mind?
Then a horrible thought entered her mind.
What if divorce wasn't his plan?
Her heart thudded in her chest, and the blood rushed in her ears. She stared at his stylized signature, thoughts swirling in her head. Regardless of his plans, she had to deal with reality. How could she survive with nothing? Chad had never let her work. She had no savings, no money of her own. After all she'd been through, he left her high and dry.
The musical chime of the doorbell broke Andi's reverie. She leaned back in the chair and peered out the bay window. Dana’s Impala sat in the driveway. Andi bit her lip, folded the new Will up and
Tears welled in her eyes. She'd suspected he cheated on her but she'd never had proof. This hurt like a knife through her heart. Her shoulders drooped under the weight of this new knowledge. She sucked in a deep breath, then blew it out in a huff. This wasn't fair. She couldn't even confront him.
She shook her head, dropped the file folder on the floor and tugged open the wooden file cabinet beside the desk and flipped through the hanging folders. Her eyes drifted to the Insurance folder, but she forced herself to be methodical. The thin Auto folder contained paperwork on the Grand Cherokee, saying he refinanced it in March. That was odd. It would have been paid off in August. She examined the signature on the promissory note. Her signature on the loan papers looked suspiciously like Chad’s receptionist’s writing, round and almost juvenile.
She flipped ahead to the Insurance folder.
Both policies were in the file folder. She pulled his out and skimmed it. When finished, she leaned back against the wall and stretched her protesting legs in front of her. It appeared to be a $250,000 life insurance policy with a clause that said if he died in an accident, the policy paid double. Relief washed over her like a wave. She'd have enough to pay the bills! She'd be able to keep the house!
If the insurance company paid.
The phone jangled and she pushed herself to her feet to answer it, stretching and massaging her tingling legs to restore the blood flow.
She was pleasantly surprised to hear Dana’s voice. “Hey, things are quiet here at the office and Edward said I can take the day off. I’m about to ready to wrap things up at work and head for home – mind if I stop by?”
Andi rolled her shoulders and smiled, “Not at all! I’ve got a couple things I want to talk to you about anyway.”
8
S he sat the insurance policy on top of the desk and returned to the hanging files in the file cabinet again. The file marked “Legal” contained photocopies of their Wills. Chad's small, neat print on the bottom of each indicated that the original was in the safe deposit box at Harbor Regional Bank. She pulled his copy out and laid it on top of the insurance policy, and continued through the files. Just as she was about to close the drawer, a plain manila file folder stuck in the very back of the cabinet caught her eye. The hand-written label simply said, “Will.” She frowned and leaned in to get a closer look. The blue manuscript jacket indicated that it had been drawn up by an attorney in Bangor by the name of Benson Harrington III.
She scanned the document, shocked to discover he specifically excluded her from his estate. Explicitly. He left everything to his trust, and named the attorney as Trustee. She flipped to the last page. The signature was dated only three weeks before.
Why would he do that to her? Had he hated her that much? He was such a perfectionist, so concerned about image. He had told her on more than one occasion that he would never, ever, get a divorce because he did not fail. What changed his mind?
Then a horrible thought entered her mind.
What if divorce wasn't his plan?
Her heart thudded in her chest, and the blood rushed in her ears. She stared at his stylized signature, thoughts swirling in her head. Regardless of his plans, she had to deal with reality. How could she survive with nothing? Chad had never let her work. She had no savings, no money of her own. After all she'd been through, he left her high and dry.
The musical chime of the doorbell broke Andi's reverie. She leaned back in the chair and peered out the bay window. Dana’s Impala sat in the driveway. Andi bit her lip, folded the new Will up and
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