Sometimes I signed simply because I was tired of feeling foolish for asking questions.
Dad listened quietly.
When I admitted how ashamed I felt, he squeezed my hand.
“Marriage is supposed to make trust possible, not turn it into something another person can exploit.”
Jonathan then presented credit reports showing unfamiliar inquiries and a summary of the allegations Preston’s attorneys planned to use against me.
They’d characterized a late utility payment from the previous winter as financial irresponsibility. Preston’s control over most household investments was being portrayed as evidence that I lacked independence.
Their constructed image barely resembled the person I knew myself to be, but every selected detail supported one conclusion.
I was supposedly incapable of making decisions without my husband.
Dad had contacted Jonathan because of his expertise in complex family disputes involving concealed assets and questionable financial documents. Yet what troubled me most was discovering Dad had quietly investigated for months.
