Chapter 8 - Walking Into The Lion Den On Christmas Eve
Despite the peace Wesley had found in his Asheville home, a final, necessary task hung over his head on the morning of Christmas Eve. The legal severance was not complete until the official trust dissolution papers and the deed transfer notifications were physically handed over. His lawyer, Marcus, had offered to send them via certified mail, but Wesley knew his Grandmother. She would claim they were lost in the post. She would drag out the legal battle for months, draining Wesley’s energy and peace of mind. He had to deliver them in person.
"I'll be back before dinner, Luna," Wesley promised, kneeling in the hallway. Luna was wearing her purple pajamas again, happily setting up a massive puzzle of the solar system on the living room rug.
"Are you taking the boundary papers?" Luna asked, not looking away from Jupiter.
"Yes, I'm taking the boundary papers to Charleston," Wesley confirmed. Dr. Sarah Jenkins, wearing a cozy oversized sweater, stood in the kitchen doorway holding a mug of tea. She had volunteered to stay with Luna while Wesley made the four-hour round trip.
"We are going to be perfectly fine," Sarah smiled warmly. "Luna is going to teach me all about Saturn's rings, and then we are ordering the largest pepperoni pizza in the city. Just drive safe, Wes. The roads are clear, but the ice is tricky."
"Thank you, Sarah. Seriously," Wesley said, standing up and throwing on his heavy winter coat. He grabbed the thick legal envelope from the table.
The drive to Charleston was a descent from the snowy mountains into the cold, gray flatlands. As Wesley pulled his car through the wrought-iron gates of the estate, he felt a familiar knot of anxiety tighten in his stomach. The massive, pillared mansion looked imposing, but today, there were no caterers' vans. There were no florists. The driveway was empty. The grand Christmas gala had officially collapsed.
Wesley walked up the marble steps and didn't bother knocking. He used his key to unlock the heavy front door, stepping into the grand foyer. The house was dead quiet, lacking the usual holiday music and roaring fires.
"Who is that?" Grandmother’s sharp voice echoed from the formal dining room.
Wesley walked deliberately toward the voice. He entered the massive dining room. The grand mahogany table, where he and Luna had been explicitly banned from sitting, was entirely bare. No crystal glasses, no silver plates. Grandmother sat at the head of the empty table, wearing a dark silk blouse, looking older and more fragile than Wesley had ever seen her. Ainsley sat halfway down the table, staring blankly at her phone, her eyes red and puffy.
When they saw Wesley, Ainsley stood up abruptly. "You came back. I knew you wouldn't actually do it."
"I am not here to rescue you, Ainsley," Wesley said, his voice echoing coldly in the cavernous room. He did not take off his coat. He walked straight to the table and dropped the heavy legal envelope right in front of Grandmother.
"What is this?" Grandmother demanded, refusing to touch the envelope.
"Those are the notarized trust dissolution papers," Wesley stated, looking down at the woman who had terrorized his peace for years. "And the formal notice of deed transfer. The estate is now legally in my name, and I am putting it on the market on January second. You have until the end of the month to pack your things."
Grandmother’s face drained of color. She looked at the envelope as if it were a bomb. "You are throwing me out into the street? Your own flesh and blood?"
"I am giving you the equity from the sale after the mortgages are paid," Wesley corrected coldly. "It will be enough to buy a modest condo. But this house, this lifestyle, and my bank account are officially closed to you."
"Wesley, please," Ainsley begged, her arrogance entirely shattered. "We had to cancel the gala. The mayor is furious. My friends won't speak to me. You've humiliated us!"
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"You humiliated yourselves," Wesley replied, turning his back on them. "You traded your family for a seating arrangement. Now, you can sit at this grand table all by yourselves."
He walked out of the dining room without looking back, the sound of their stunned silence the greatest victory he had ever achieved.
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