Chapter 7
Rosie was publicly judged and condemned by the very moral court she had built herself, nailed to the pillar of shame.
The complete reversal of public opinion had made the Fisher family the laughingstock of the community.
Tessa didn't dare show her face in the family group chat anymore.
Whenever Eddie went outside, he could feel the neighbors pointing fingers and gossiping about him.
Devon got dragged by Willa in her social circle, and soon, he became the go-to example of a freeloader among their friends.
The whole family was like rats scurrying across the street, shunned by everyone.
But this was only the beginning.
The real destruction was coming soon.
A week later, a registered letter arrived at the Fisher family's house.
On the envelope was a law firm logo they'd never seen before, but it looked intimidatingly official.
Eddie's hands shook as he tore open the envelope.
Inside was a carefully drafted legal notice.
It read: [Formal Notice Regarding Repayment of 960 thousand dollars owed to Rosie Fisher by Eddie Fisher and Tessa Fisher]
The legal notice clearly outlined Rosie's claims.
It also attached a detailed bill as supporting evidence.
The letter also specified a final deadline. [Please contact our firm within seven days of receiving this notice to arrange a repayment plan.
[Otherwise, we will initiate legal proceedings on behalf of Ms. Rosie Fisher.
[At that time, we will apply to have all your assets seized or frozen, and pursue legal responsibility against you.]
Words like asset seizure, account freeze, and legal responsibility were a heavy blow, slamming into Eddie's heart.
He'd always thought Rosie was being dramatic.
He figured that the bill was an empty threat to scare them.
They were family. He couldn't believe how she could drag her own parents to court.
But that legal notice, stamped with a glaring red seal, shattered his illusions.
Rosie was dead serious.
She was dead set on using the law to force them to pay up.
"She's crazy! She's out of her mind," Eddie shouted, his voice trembling with rage.
He crumpled up the legal notice and slammed it hard onto the floor.
"She's going to sue me. Sue her own father. How could she?" Eddie fumed.
Tessa picked up the crumpled paper, her hands shaking as she read the words. She felt her whole body go weak with fear.
She asked, "Eddie, what are we gonna do?
"Where are we going to find that much money?"
Devon was freaking out, too. "Dad, she's not going to send us to jail, right?"
Eddie dialed Rosie's number again.
This time, instead of the endless ringing, he got something else.
An icy, automated female voice came through the line. "The number you have dialed has been disconnected."
Rosie changed her phone number.
She cut off the last way they could reach her.
She disappeared from their world.
All that remained was a 960-thousand-dollar debt notice, like a death sentence hanging over their heads.
The whole family was thrown into panic and despair.
But when they thought things couldn't get any worse, another disaster hit.
The next day, another letter showed up at their house, this time with a bank logo stamped on it.
Eddie was already on edge, like a bird that had been startled too many times.
He figured it was another overdue credit card notice, so he tore it open impatiently.
But what he saw inside hit him like a bolt of lightning.
It read: [Dear Customer, Regarding the mortgage on your property at No. 40, Fairin Lane, Dreek District, please be advised as follows.
[Your mortgage payment is now one month overdue.
[You must pay the overdue amount and late fees within 30 days. If not, we will begin foreclosure proceedings and auction your property as per the loan contract and the law.]
They were going to auction off the house.
Eddie was dumbfounded.
He thought this place was paid off years ago.
He swore that Rosie told him a few years back that the mortgage was already settled.
He scrambled to dig out the property deed.
When he saw that familiar, glaring name on the deed, it finally hit him.
The property owner was Rosie Fisher.
The house had been in Rosie's name from the very beginning.
Back when they bought the house, Rosie had just started working and didn't have enough to pay for it all.
She made the down payment herself and took out a thirty-year mortgage.
To make Eddie look good in front of the relatives, she always told everyone that Eddie had paid for the house in full.
Every month, she would set up automatic payments from her own bank account to cover the mortgage.
For nearly ten years, she'd been paying off the mortgage all by herself, never telling anyone the truth.
Now, she was out of their lives for good.
She took every last dollar she owned with her.
She stopped the auto-payments from her bank account.
So the bank's collection notice showed up at their door.
Eddie clutched the thin property deed and the thick stack of collection notices.
His hands trembled like leaves caught in an autumn breeze.
At last, it all hit him hard.
Rosie's payback was never about that one ruthless phone call.