Maya walked into Gwendolyn’s dining room to find the table set formally, far more elaborate than any ordinary family lunch, and immediately understood why Paige had insisted she attend: sitting near the head of the table, papers already spread in front of her, was a notary public Gwendolyn had apparently arranged in advance. “We thought it would be convenient to finalize the property paperwork today,” Gwendolyn said smoothly, gesturing toward the documents. “No need to make a separate trip later, especially so close to your due date.”
Maya sat down calmly, glancing at Ryan, who avoided her eyes entirely. She picked up the papers, scanning them slowly while everyone at the table waited, and found exactly what she expected: a transfer of property rights that would have signed away her sole ownership of the apartment, folded into vague language about “joint marital efficiency” and “estate simplification.” She set the papers down gently.
“I’m not signing this,” she said, her voice calm and even. Gwendolyn’s smile flickered. “Maya, dear, this is simply practical. David explained everything.” “David explained a lot of things,” Maya replied. “Like how he transferred over four thousand dollars to Valerie for her baby shower two nights ago. Should we discuss that over lunch too?”
The table went silent. Ryan’s face drained of color as Gwendolyn’s composed expression cracked for the first time, her eyes darting toward her son. “What is she talking about?” Ryan opened his mouth, but no explanation came. Maya reached into her bag and set copies of the screenshots, the receipts, and the messages on the table beside the untouched property documents, the evidence she and Paige had spent days compiling laid out plainly for everyone to see.
“I came today because Paige told me something was waiting for me here. I assumed it was this,” she said, tapping the property papers. “I didn’t realize it would also be an opportunity to show everyone exactly what kind of family I’ve been protecting for the past four years.” She stood slowly, one hand resting on her belly, and looked at Ryan one final time. “I’m not signing anything. And I won’t be attending family lunches until someone in this house is ready to be honest.” She walked out with Paige waiting outside, leaving Gwendolyn’s carefully arranged plan, and Ryan’s unraveling composure, scattered across the untouched lunch table behind her.
