Chapter 4 - Building the Case
On the third morning, watching gulls wheel over the rocks, she made a second decision.
The canceled trip wasn't the real problem. The real problem was the life waiting for her at home if she did nothing.
So she opened her laptop and started pulling records together.
Three years of utility bills that had nearly doubled after Danny's family moved in. Bank transfers for groceries. Receipts for school clothes, pediatric copays, holiday gifts, sports fees, gas, car repairs, streaming subscriptions, and a long line of "emergencies" that had somehow all become hers. A timeline of every promise Danny had made about moving out. The emails about Park City. The payment confirmation. The screenshot.
She called an attorney named Diane Petrosky, recommended by the bank manager who'd once helped Ruth untangle a contractor dispute.
Diane listened, asked short practical questions, and said, "You have more documentation than most of my clients have after a lawsuit's already started."
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Within two days, Diane had drafted a formal notice to vacate, a demand preserving Ruth's right to recover certain documented expenses if it came to that, and instructions about locks, occupancy, and future contact.
Ruth printed it all and squared it into two neat folders.
