Chapter 5 - The Courtroom Massacre
The day of our initial divorce hearing arrived. The courtroom was packed. Julian had managed to scrounge together enough money to hire a discount, strip-mall attorney who looked like he was sweating through his suit.
I arrived flanked by the most feared family law attorneys in the state. I wore an ivory suit, exuding calm, untouchable power.
Julian looked like a ghost. He had lost weight, his eyes were bloodshot, and the arrogant smirk that had defined him for years was entirely erased.
His lawyer tried to argue for spousal support, claiming I had "hidden my vast wealth" and that Julian had grown accustomed to a certain lifestyle.
My lead attorney, Ms. Vance, stood up with a stack of papers thicker than a phone book.
“Your Honor,” she began, “Mr. Vance is not entitled to a single cent of my client’s pre-marital or inherited wealth. Furthermore, we have a forensic audit proving that Mr. Vance embezzled over four hundred thousand dollars from their joint marital accounts to fund an illicit affair and purchase fraudulent luxury goods.”
The judge flipped through the audit, his eyebrows raising higher with every page.
“In addition,” my attorney continued, “we have filed a police report regarding the forged quitclaim deed on the marital property. Mr. Vance committed felony fraud while my client was in the hospital delivering their children.”
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The judge looked down at Julian with utter disgust. “Mr. Vance, I am denying your request for spousal support. I am granting full, sole physical and legal custody of the three minor children to the mother. You will be granted zero visitation rights pending a psychological evaluation. And you are ordered to pay the entirety of the petitioner's legal fees.”
Julian buried his face in his hands and openly sobbed in the courtroom. It was a pathetic sight, but I felt absolutely nothing. The man who had tried to break me was now breaking under the weight of his own hubris.
