Over the next 3 days, my husband switched tactics completely. The angry call stopped and the text started long paragraphs about how he’d overreacted and he loved our family and he was willing to go to counseling. He said Lily had misunderstood his intentions and he was just trying to teach her responsibility like any good parent would.
He said he’d been stressed at work and took it out on us, but he was going to do better. He said we could work through this if I just give him a chance. Each message was carefully worded and reasonable sounding. I read them and recognized the pattern I’d been missing for 2 years. The way he was rewriting what happened, making himself the victim of misunderstanding instead of the person who told a 16-year-old girl to leave her own home, making his cruelty sound like tough love, making my protection of my daughter sound like an overreaction. I responded once. I told
him the 30-day notice stood and all further communication needed to be in writing through lawyers. He called immediately. I didn’t answer. He sent five more texts that got progressively less reasonable. I saved all of them in my documentation folder. My friend Rachel had recommended a family law attorney named Victoria Morgan.
I called her office on Monday morning and explained my situation to the receptionist. She squeezed me in for Thursday afternoon. Victoria’s office was in a converted house downtown with hardwood floors and bookshelves covering every wall. She was maybe 50 with gray hair pulled back in a bun and sharp eyes that didn’t miss anything.
I sat across from her desk and handed her a copy of my prenup. She read through it carefully while I tried not to fidget. After 10 minutes, she looked up and told me my house was completely protected as separate property and my husband had no legal claim to it whatsoever. The relief that washed through me made my hands shake.
She explained the separation and divorce process step by step. She warned me that my husband would likely escalate when he realized I was serious about ending the marriage. She asked if he’d ever been violent, and I said no, but he’d been emotionally abusive to my daughter. She helped me start documenting everything for a potential restraining order.