My Husband Left Me With Nothing After the Divorce But Fate Had Other Plans for Him

She explained calmly that these documents had also been provided to Mr. Carrington’s business partners, who were present in the courtroom today. She added that the information may also be of significant interest to certain federal agencies.

Vincent turned around and saw his partners for the first time. The color drained from his face.

One of them, a man named Gregory who had always been friendly to me at holiday parties, just shook his head slowly. The disappointment in his eyes was devastating.

Bradley Whitmore asked for a recess. His hands were actually trembling.

The legendary lawyer who never lost, who charged $500 just to think about your case, was coming apart at the seams. Judge Fitzgerald denied the recess.

She wanted to see where this was going. Camille introduced the evidence of Vincent’s affair: the car he bought for Tiffany, the apartment he rented for their meetings, and the jewelry—including that $4,000 necklace—all claimed as business expenses, all deducted from taxes.

She noted that this appeared to constitute tax fraud in addition to marital fraud. I glanced at Tiffany; she was no longer looking at her phone.

She was looking at the exit. Survival instinct finally kicking in, I suppose.

She slipped out of the courtroom quietly, probably realizing that the Maldives trip was not going to happen and that being associated with Vincent Carrington was about to become very uncomfortable. Dolores sat frozen in her seat, mouth hanging open slightly.

The notebook lay forgotten in her lap. This was not the story she had planned to tell her friends.

Vincent tried to speak. He said this was all lies, all fabrications, and that I had somehow manufactured evidence to destroy him.

Judge Fitzgerald cut him off. She had seen a lot of cases in her career.

She said people lied to her all the time. But the audacity of lying this extensively, this brazenly, while committing fraud against a spouse, business partners, and the federal government simultaneously was genuinely impressive—and not in a good way.

She looked at Vincent the way you look at something unpleasant stuck to your shoe. Then she looked at me, and for just a moment, I saw something like respect in her eyes.

Judge Fitzgerald’s ruling was everything I had dreamed of and more. Full custody of Hazel to me.

The house, which I had paid for with my grandmother’s inheritance, transferred entirely to my name. 70% of all marital assets awarded to me due to Vincent’s fraud, hidden accounts, and perjury before the court.

Full child support calculated on his actual income, not the fake numbers he had reported. Medical expenses for Hazel covered completely.

And Vincent was ordered to restore her health insurance immediately, retroactive to the day he had removed her. The man who said he wanted everything was about to lose everything.

The man who told me to get out of his house was now legally required to get out of my house. The man who called his daughter stinky and sick would spend the next ten years paying for her care whether he liked it or not.

But the court ruling was just the beginning of Vincent’s collapse. The federal investigation started within three weeks.

Tax fraud is not something the IRS takes lightly, especially when it’s documented this thoroughly. His assets were frozen pending investigation.

His passport was flagged. The Maldives would have to wait, possibly forever.

His business partners filed their own lawsuit. Embezzlement from a partnership is a serious matter, and Gregory and the others were not feeling forgiving.

They wanted their money back plus damages. Vincent’s lawyers—plural now, because Whitmore had mysteriously developed a scheduling conflict that prevented him from continuing representation—were billing hours they would probably never collect.

Dolores stopped posting on social media. Her friends had seen the court documents, which were public record.

The gold digger story didn’t hold up well when everyone could read about her son’s $600,000 in hidden accounts and his ongoing federal investigation. I heard through mutual acquaintances that she had taken down all her posts about the divorce and was telling people she had always had concerns about Vincent’s character.

Some things never change. Tiffany disappeared from Vincent’s life approximately 45 minutes after the court ruling.

The apartment he had rented for her was in his name, and with his assets frozen, rent was no longer being paid. The car was repossessed two weeks later.

I don’t know where she went, and I found that I genuinely did not care. She was a symptom, not the disease.

Vincent had plenty of problems that had nothing to do with her. Ruth retired on schedule.

She sent me a card congratulating me on my victory with a pressed flower from her garden tucked inside. She wrote that her daughter had cried happy tears reading about the case and that sometimes justice really does win.

I framed that card. It sits on my desk at my new job because, yes, I went back to work.

It turns out that forensic accountants who can uncover massive fraud schemes are in high demand. Patricia recommended me to several firms and I had three job offers within a month.

I chose the one with the best health insurance and the most flexible schedule for a single mom. My skills had been sleeping for six years, but they woke up ready to work.

Hazel and I moved back into our house—our house. I let her pick new colors for her bedroom and she chose purple with silver stars.

We adopted a cat from the shelter because Hazel had always wanted one and Vincent had always said no. She named him Biscuit and he sleeps at the foot of her bed every night.

Her breathing is better now. Regular treatment, proper medication, and a stable home where she feels safe and loved.

She still asks about her father sometimes. I tell her the truth in age-appropriate ways.

He made some bad choices. He has to deal with the consequences.

We will be okay. Last month I ran into Vincent at the grocery store.