A week later, Derek showed up at my café.
Not to apologize.
To perform.
He waited until the lunch rush, until the line was long, until the room was full of people.
Then he walked in like he still owned the world.
He leaned over the counter, smiling loudly.
“Joanna,” he said, “we should talk.”
My coworkers froze.
Customers stared.
My manager’s eyes narrowed.
I took a breath and kept my voice polite. “You need to leave.”
Derek laughed. “Don’t be dramatic. We’re family.”
Family.
That word used to trap me.
It didn’t anymore.
“I’m working,” I said. “Step aside.”
His smile sharpened.
“You really think you can run a construction empire?” he said, raising his voice. “You’re a waitress.”
The word was meant to crush me.
But something funny happened.
I didn’t collapse.
I smiled.
Because I had finally learned something Derek never understood:
Work isn’t shameful.
Laziness is.
I leaned slightly closer and said calmly, “You’re right. I was a waitress.”
Derek’s eyes flickered, confused.
“And you were my husband,” I continued. “But we don’t get to keep titles after we lose the responsibilities.”
His face tightened.
I straightened. “If you’re here to harass me, I’ll call security.”
He hissed under his breath. “You stole my life.”
I looked at him like he was a stranger.
“No,” I said. “You gave it away the night you kicked my suitcase down the stairs.”
The café went silent.
And Derek—who loved humiliating others—suddenly realized he was humiliating himself.
He left.
But not before saying one last thing.
“This isn’t over,” he whispered.
7) THE FINAL TWIST IN THE LAW OFFICE
Two weeks later, I got another message from Vincent.
“Derek filed a challenge,” he said.
My chest tightened.
Vincent continued, calm. “But there’s a problem for him.”
“What problem?” I asked.
Vincent paused—then said the words that made me sit down.
“He didn’t know your father-in-law recorded a statement.”
I felt my breath catch. “A statement?”
“Yes,” Vincent said. “A video deposition. Theodore left it specifically for the moment Derek tried to contest the will.”
My hands trembled. “What does it say?”
Vincent’s voice lowered. “It explains everything. And it names Derek’s behavior in detail.”
When we returned to the office, Derek looked different.
Less confident.
More desperate.
He still wore a suit, but it didn’t fit the same way. Like reality had gained weight and his fantasy couldn’t carry it.
Vincent opened a laptop.
Derek’s attorney frowned. “What is this?”
Vincent looked at the judge-appointed mediator. “Per the will’s instructions, we are submitting Theodore Harrison’s recorded deposition.”
Derek stiffened.
Vincent pressed play.
The screen lit up with Theodore sitting in a chair, thinner than I remembered, but eyes clear.
“My name is Theodore James Harrison,” he said. “If you’re watching this, it means my son Derek has done exactly what I expected.”
Derek’s face twitched.
Theodore continued.
“I love my son,” he said. “But love doesn’t mean enabling.”
Derek’s attorney shifted uncomfortably.
Theodore’s voice stayed steady.
“Derek has avoided work. He has lied. He has used people. He has treated Joanna—my daughter-in-law—with less respect than she has ever deserved.”
I swallowed hard.
Theodore looked straight into the camera.
“Joanna is the reason I did not die alone,” he said. “And Derek is the reason I made this will airtight.”
Derek’s jaw clenched.
Theodore added something that hit like a gavel:
“If Derek contests this, he will receive nothing. And I hope—truly hope—that the shame of it teaches him what money never could.”
The video ended.
The room was dead silent.
Derek’s attorney cleared his throat. “We… withdraw the challenge.”
Derek’s head snapped. “What?!”
His attorney leaned close, whispering harshly. “If we proceed, you get nothing. You’ll also lose fees. You’ll lose everything.”
Derek’s face contorted.
He looked at me then—eyes wet, furious, humiliated.
Like he wanted me to save him.
Like he believed I still existed to clean up his mess.
I didn’t move.
And that’s when Derek did the only thing left.
He fell apart.
Not quietly.
Not gracefully.
He slammed his fists on the table and shouted, “THIS ISN’T FAIR!”
Vincent’s voice was calm. “Fair is what happens when actions have consequences.”
Derek turned to me. “Joanna… please. Just… help me. You don’t need all of it.”
I stood.
And I said the line I’d held inside my chest for fifteen years.
“I needed a husband,” I said. “Not a parasite.”
Derek flinched like I’d hit him.
I didn’t raise my voice.
I didn’t insult him.
I simply told the truth.
Then I turned to Vincent.
“Let’s finalize the transfer,” I said.
Vincent nodded.
And Derek—who once kicked my suitcase like I was nothing—watched as the universe erased his entitlement with signatures.
8) THE ENDING: WHAT I DID WITH THE LIFE I GOT BACK
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