When Courtney returned, she accused me of causing the problems now confronting the family. I explained that I had shared records and sought independent advice because the explanations I had received no longer matched the documents. She eventually acknowledged that Garrett had persuaded her to pool family money into his business and that she had known for years that some of my money was involved. Garrett later became unreachable, taking company records with him, while the house faced foreclosure. Attorneys and investigators began examining the transfers and the unresolved estate questions. I recovered part of the money, although other matters required a longer process. There was no immediate solution to every financial issue, and understanding the extent of what had happened took time. I continued cooperating with the review while establishing limits on any further financial involvement.
Over the following months, Travis became more involved in Owen and Lucy’s lives. I remained close to them as their aunt, but I stopped being the automatic answer to every childcare request or financial difficulty. Those boundaries allowed me to reconsider opportunities I had repeatedly postponed. Six months later, the Dallas position connected to the interview I had missed reopened, and I accepted it. Boarding the flight, I thought about the email that had helped bring the conflicting stories into focus. I had sent it to document a difficult morning, without knowing how much else would emerge. The records did not repair every relationship or recover every dollar, but they gave me a basis for making informed decisions. I could care about my family and the children while also making room for a future of my own.