Chapter 5 - THE MONEY HE HAD BEEN HIDING
Natalie helped me review our finances.
I had managed the household bills while Ryan was at sea.
But he controlled a separate account where his cruise salary was deposited.
For years, he'd told me most of his income went toward paying off old debts.
I believed him.
Now I wasn't sure.
We contacted a family-law attorney named Rebecca Shaw.
Rebecca was calm, practical, and refreshingly unimpressed by Ryan's excuses.
She reviewed our marriage documents.
Our bank statements.
The mortgage.
The babies' birth certificates.
Then she asked a question.
“Claire, have you seen your husband's complete financial records?”
I shook my head.
“No.”
“Then we need to obtain them through the proper legal process.”
I looked at Natalie.
She squeezed my hand.
Rebecca continued.
“Your immediate priorities are financial stability, temporary parenting arrangements, and protecting the children's interests.”
I nodded.
“What about the video?”
“It may be relevant to certain factual disputes, but the divorce process won't turn solely on that recording.”
I appreciated her honesty.
I didn't want revenge.
I wanted security.
For myself.
For Lily.
For Grace.
Over the following weeks, financial disclosures revealed that Ryan had been spending significant amounts on luxury purchases and travel expenses.
Money he'd told me we didn't have.
Money I'd desperately needed when buying formula, diapers, and medication.
I stared at the statements.
Then I laughed.
Natalie looked at me.
“What?”
I shook my head.
“He told me we couldn't afford a new washing machine.”
She looked at the transactions.
Her expression darkened.
“And he was spending hundreds of dollars on jewelry?”
I nodded.
I remembered standing in the laundry room at midnight, trying to coax another cycle out of our broken machine.
Ryan had been buying gifts for other women.
I closed the folder.
May you like
Something inside me settled.
I wasn't going back.
