Chapter 5 - Miriam’s Hidden Agenda
Miriam let out a sharp, hysterical laugh that sounded like shattering porcelain.
"Forty-eight hours? I gave up the lease on my condominium in Lake Oswego three weeks ago because Wesley told me I was moving in!"
I turned to Wesley, who suddenly looked like he wanted to crawl beneath the Persian rug.
"Is that true, Wesley? Did you already promise your mother my master bedroom before you even served me these papers?"
Wesley buried his face in his hands, unable to meet either woman’s gaze as his house of cards fell around him.
"Mom needed the equity from her condo to pay off her credit card debts," Wesley mumbled into his palms.
"We were going to refinance this place together under a joint family trust once you signed the release."
Miriam gasped, turning on her son with sudden ferocity.
"You promised me you had full control of the title! You swore Renata was too intimidated by financial paperwork to ever challenge you!"
"She was an administrator, Mom! She never cared about the banking passwords!" Wesley cried out defensively.
"I cared enough to hire a forensic accountant when thirty thousand dollars disappeared from our joint savings account," I said.
"And I discovered that you transferred that money directly into Miriam’s personal checking account to cover her country club dues."
Miriam froze, her face flushing crimson beneath her heavy foundation.
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"That was a personal family loan between a devoted son and his aging mother," she stammered.
"It was grand theft of marital assets, Miriam. And my forensic accountant has already submitted the audit to the Multnomah County court."
