I Thought My Husband Was Handling Our Mortgage—Until an Eviction Notice Arrived

I Thought My Husband Was Paying Our Mortgage — Then I Got an Eviction Notice

Before an eviction notice rocks her world, Belle believes her husband, Jeffrey, is making the mortgage payments. She discovers a heartbreaking betrayal, complete with depleted bank accounts and a high-stakes fraud, while searching desperately for answers. She has to choose between destroying him and saving him, with her love and home at stake.

The crazy part is that you never anticipate experiencing it yourself.

There are tales of women discovering their husbands had secret bank accounts, secret lives, secret everything when they wake up. But that’s only a story, isn’t it? something that other people experience.

I had that thought. until the eviction notice was affixed to our front door when I got home. With the takeout packets in my hands, I stood there, threatening to drop to the ground and destroy everything.

However, wasn’t everything already ruined? Or perhaps it was an error. A major, irrevocable error.

THE PROPERTY WILL BE SEIZED IN 30 DAYS, PER FINAL NOTICE.

At first, the words didn’t make sense. Reading them repeatedly in that way would cause them to reorganize themselves into a logical form, so I blinked. As if they were going to tell me that this was a mistake.

Because that must have been an error.

It had to be.

My husband, Jeffrey, and I were mature, responsible adults. We had created a life together from the ground up and had two children, Gemma and Gavin. Our financial arrangement had been successful for eleven years.

I paid for all of the children’s necessities, including groceries, utilities, and school supplies. In addition to managing the mortgage, Jeffrey occasionally had to fill up my automobile with gas.

It was in balance.

It was logical.

It was successful.

However, this? This must have been a mistake. Most likely, it was stuck to the incorrect door.

My hands began to shake as I stared at that formal, cold piece of paper. What if this was actually taking place? Where would we go? How would we respond? How about the children?

Taking the damned note with me, I entered the house. I was beginning to lose my mind.

“Mom, did you get dinner?” With his headphones on, Gavin stood in the hallway and inquired.

Saying, “I did, honey,” “Everything is in the kitchen. Proceed and assist yourself. I will simply wait for Dad to finish his meal.

With a nod, he walked to his sister’s room to fetch her so they could share a meal.

What about me? I was going crazy. I had trembling hands. My thoughts were racing.

Jeff, what the devil? I pondered.

I knew it was time for the explanation—or whatever Jeffrey tried to explain—when the front door opened later.

“Belle?” Like any other day, Jeffrey’s tone was informal. I apologize for being late. I simply got caught up.

I pushed the note across the kitchen counter and turned to face him.

Simply, “What is this?” I inquired.

I saw his fingers tighten over the page as his face went colorless. His mouth twitched, and he uttered a tremulous laugh.

He was not going to attempt to ignore this in any manner. His mind was racing, and I could see it.

“Oh, uh. All right. “Don’t freak out, Belle,” he replied, sounding like a deer in headlights.

“Don’t freak out?!” My voice broke. “Our house is in danger of being taken away! “What did you do?”

His eyes darted everywhere but at me as he gulped.

Saying, “Don’t shout,” “I don’t want the kids to know.”

With my arms folded, I remarked, “They’ll find out when we lose the house anyway.” “What the hell did you do, Jeffrey?”

“Belle, it’s just a minor setback. Something transient. I’d… I’m resolving some financial concerns that I have. I promise you!”

“How long has this been going on?” My ears throbbed with my heartbeat.

He hesitated and sighed.

“Just a few months, sweetie. I swear.

A few months? Months!

The floor underneath me seemed to be exploding. We lived here, and suddenly it was under danger. How could I have overlooked this? Had I overlooked anything else?

“What kind of financial issues, Jeffrey?” I insisted. “What were you doing? Have you gambled once more?

Before we were married, Jeffrey had a reputation for gambling away his money for hours at a casino. Fortunately, he had resigned before we become accustomed to our married life.

What if, however, his old habit had returned?

He ran a hand through his hair and let out a quick exhale. “It’s complicated,” he replied.

difficult. That term made my stomach turn.

Is he going to start gambling again? Or a drug issue? Perhaps a second family? Really, how could this be explained?

However, my spouse refused to look me in the eye. He refused to be honest with me.

I stole his phone that night while he was sleeping.

The screen unlocked as I placed his thumb to it, making my stomach turn. I’m not sure what I was hoping to discover.

But all I knew was that I had to know.

And my whole universe collapsed in a matter of seconds.

I found her right away. A woman named Vanessa was the source of our issues.

Her name made my tongue taste like poison.

Additionally, their texts were visible on all social media sites. And they were obscenely sweet.

I cherish you.

You are missed.

Everything we deserve will soon be ours.

Jeff, we’re getting closer to living the life we’ve always wanted.

It wasn’t even the worst part, though.

And there were bank transfers!

substantial bank transfers. with assurances of prosperity. I eventually put it together after spending some time going through their discussion. Vanessa had persuaded Jeffrey that he would become a millionaire very quickly if he put enough money into her father’s business.

What had my husband been up to, then?

Rather than paying our mortgage, he had been sending Vanessa money. They weren’t little or few payments. Each of them was valued at thousands of dollars. Some of the payments exceeded the amount we owed on the house by more than twice.

With vomit rising in my throat, I kept scrolling until I came across a recent message that chilled me to the bone.

Babe, they won’t ever see it coming. I cherish you! I’m very grateful that you’re helping us! Now, by the end of the week, send me an additional $10,000.

It was the way she spoke to him—almost as if he were prey.

This was more than a simple affair. They had conned this stupid man.

I typed Vanessa’s name into Google with no preconceived notions. I had no idea what I was searching for. A profile on social media, perhaps? Some evidence of the authenticity of this woman?

However, what I discovered made me want to vomit.

Article follows article. Scam warnings. Victims’ warnings. A police report. This time, she went as Vanessa, and she had been doing this for years. She would pretend to be a rich businesswoman’s daughter in order to lure men into her fraudulent investment schemes, drain them of their money, and then vanish.

Jeffrey, too? She had recently been fooled by my spouse.

I clicked on a three-month-old police notice. The profile photo on Jeffrey’s phone matched the sketchy sketch of her. No one had been able to find her, despite the fact that officials were apparently aggressively looking for her.

So far.

Because Jeffrey had met her, unlike her previous victims.

observed her.

knew her.

My heart was racing. I had everything the cops required to apprehend her at last. And I wasn’t going to let this chance pass me by.

My hubby wasn’t awakened by me. For a while, I just wanted to absorb what I had discovered.

I went to see an attorney the following morning after dropping the kids off at school.

“Belle,” he said with a kind grin as I took a seat. “How’s your family doing?”

Since my mother had to deal with a terrible landlord a few years prior, I had known Hank. He let out a sigh when I told him everything.

“There are possibilities, but this one is going to be tough. The police station should be your next destination after this. Alright?”

As it turned out, there was a minuscule chance that I could rescue the house. It might be possible if I could figure out the past-due payments quickly enough.

Bad news?

Jeffrey had spent nearly all of our money.

I therefore presented the police with my evidence.

“This is the best lead we’ve had in a while,” the officer stated. “She’s gotten sloppy.”

I said, “What do you mean?”

She wouldn’t meet with her victims prior to this. Everything she did would be done online. It was different with your husband, though. He got to know her. He was with her on the weekends. Can you verify this?

I gave a nod.

“I saw pictures. Enough of them.

That somehow gave Jeffrey value.

One cop looked over the screenshots I had printed and stated, “We can finally catch her, Belle, if we can get him to set up another meeting.” At last.

I prepared a tuna casserole that evening, assisted the children with their homework, and put them to bed after supper.

I then bided my time till Jeffrey returned home.

He said, “Hey, babe,” and pulled his tie off.

“I know everything.”

The screenshots were thrown onto the table by me.

His face went white as a ghost.

He cracked, “What… what is this?”

I responded, “You tell me, Jeffrey,” as my pulse pounded and my chest constricted. “You let us get evicted so that you could fund your mistress’s life?”

“I…” His gaze shifted from my face to the evidence on the counter. “I can explain.”

However, the two officers emerged from the living room’s shadows and started telling him everything.

I saw it happen right then and there. He had never been loved by Vanessa. And for what? He had lost everything.

A fraud.

“We can help you,” one of the officers offered. “But only if you help us catch her.”

Jeffrey met Vanessa at a budget motel a week later. Since all of his money was gone, she assumed he was bringing her priceless jewelry this time.

What was unknown to her?

that the police were waiting and listening in the adjacent room. Jeffrey gave the phony diamond jewelry to her. Whispering something unbearably sweet on his lips, she planted a kiss on him.

The door then sprang open.

Vanessa let out a scream. She attempted to flee. She attempted to push and kick her way out, but she was handcuffed in a matter of minutes.

A significant portion of the money was recovered. It was sufficient to save the house, but it wasn’t everything.

With the exception of my marriage. It was irreparably broken, and the damage had been done.

Jeffrey pleaded with me to pardon him. He promised to perform better.

“I’ll be the father our kids deserve,” he stated. “I promise you!”

“Sure, but only time will tell,” I told the truth.

I then submitted a divorce petition.

Since I was the stable parent, the court granted me full custody of the children as well as the house.

Jeffrey, on the other hand, was forced to return to live with his mother and was forced to pay for his foolishness over the course of the following few years.

What about his aspirations to become a millionaire?