Chapter 5 - BURNING BRIDGES
The fallout was instantaneous and entirely self-inflicted. Linda immediately blamed Vanessa’s insatiable greed for pushing her to demand the money in the first place. Vanessa, crying hysterically, screamed that Linda had ruined her engagement and her entire life. Right there in the mediator's office, the perfect mother-daughter alliance disintegrated into vicious, unforgivable accusations. They weren't a family anymore; they were two cornered accomplices turning state's evidence on one another. I stood up and walked out of the room before they even noticed I was leaving.
