I looked at a photograph of Sophie and Ethan beside my laptop.
My children were smiling in the picture.
They had no idea how much effort was going into protecting their future.
“I don’t want revenge against my children’s father,” I whispered.
Olivia nodded.
“Then let the evidence speak.”
I studied the three binders.
Each one represented weeks of careful work.
Banking records.
Digital evidence.
Financial disclosures.
Witness accounts.
Expert findings.
I thought about how easily Daniel had dismissed me.
How confidently Vanessa had assumed I would surrender.
How my parents had encouraged me to give away the life I’d spent years building.
Then I answered Olivia.
“No,” I answered. “I want the truth to speak. The consequences can follow.”
That was the decision I carried into court.
I wasn’t there to create a spectacle.
I wasn’t there to humiliate my family for the sake of humiliation.
