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00:00His lawyer leaned in and whispered five words. Just five. And Vincent's face. That smug,
00:08self-satisfied face I'd stared at across the breakfast table for fifteen years,
00:12went completely white. His hands started trembling. The papers he'd been so eager to
00:19sign were shaking like leaves in a storm. And me, for the first time in three years,
00:26I smiled. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Let me start from the beginning because you need to
00:33understand how we got here. How a woman everyone thought had lost her mind.
00:39Actually played the longest, most patient game of her life.
00:42My name is Alexis Dunst. I'm thirty-four years old and until
00:48three months ago, I was married to Vincent Mercer. Fifteen years of marriage. That's
00:56longer than most Hollywood relationships, longer than some small countries have existed,
01:00and definitely longer than my patience should have lasted. But I'm a stubborn woman.
01:07I get it from my grandmother. I met Vincent. When I was seventeen.
01:13I'd graduated high school early. Not because I was some genius. But because I was practical and
01:20motivated and really, really wanted to get out of my parents' house. I got a
01:26job at Henderson and Price Law Firm as a file clerk. Minimum wage, maximum paper. Cuts,
01:34but it was mine. By eighteen, I'd worked my way up to legal assistant. I was good with details,
01:41good with numbers, good. With keeping my mouth shut and my eyes open.
01:46Vincent was twenty-four when we met at a client event, charming, ambitious, full
01:51of dreams about building a real estate empire. He talked about the future like it was already his,
01:57like success was. Just waiting for him to show up and claim it. He said he was going to build
02:04something incredible. I said I'd help. Him file the paperwork. Romance, right?
02:11We got married when I was nineteen. Tyler came. Along when I was twenty. I kept working at the
02:20law firm part-time while raising our son, building up my 401k. Saving every spare dollar. My grandmother
02:27always said a woman should have her own money. Not secret money. She'd clarify, just her own.
02:35Something nobody could take. At twenty-three, Vincent's. Business finally took off. He asked
02:43me to quit the law firm and help him full-time. He needed someone to manage. The books, handle
02:50clients, coordinate with contractors, someone he could trust. Completely. So, I became his unpaid
02:57everything. Bookkeeper, office manager. Client liaison, interior decorator for model homes,
03:05marketing coordinator. Event planner. I did it all while raising Tyler, managing our household,
03:11and somehow keeping everyone fed and reasonably happy. My official title was wife. My unofficial title
03:20was everything. Else. For eleven years, I poured myself into building Vincent's dream. And for eleven
03:29years, he got the credit, the awards, the recognition. At every industry event, I was Vincent's wife.
03:37At every celebration, he thanked his team, his mentors, his vision. But somehow never
03:45quite got around to thanking me. Somewhere along the way, things shifted. He started making decisions
03:52without consulting me. Started staying late for work more and more often. Started criticizing little
04:01things, the way I dressed, the meals I cooked, my lack of ambition, lack of ambition. I was running his
04:08entire back office for free. While raising his son and keeping his life organized. But sure, not ambitious
04:16enough. Then three months ago, he dropped. The bomb. He came home on a Tuesday evening. I was making
04:25dinner. His favorite actually, because I'm. Apparently a glutton for unappreciated effort. He sat me down at the
04:34kitchen table with this look on his face. Not. Sad, not apologetic, just businesslike. I want a divorce,
04:44he said. And then, I. Want the house, the cars, the business, everything. You can keep Tyler. He said.
04:54It like he was ordering from a menu. I'll have the assets. Hold the child. Thanks. Keep Tyler like our
05:04fifteen-year-old. Son was a leftover pizza like he was an inconvenience being graciously allowed
05:10to stay with me. I just stared at him. Fifteen years of marriage and this was how it
05:17ended at our kitchen table, between the salt shaker and the butter dish like I was just another item he
05:22was discarding. What I didn't know in that moment, what I wouldn't find out until later was that Vincent
05:27had been planning this for. Months. He already had a lawyer, Harold Whitfield. Expensive and
05:35experienced. He'd been building his exit strategy while I was meal prepping and scheduling his dentist
05:41appointments. I'd been. Blindsided by a man I trusted with everything. The next day, his mother
05:49showed up. Lorraine Mercer, a woman who. Had treated me like the help for fifteen years,
05:56arrived with her perfectly styled. Hair and her perfectly practiced sympathy face.
06:02She patted my hand and. Told me I should have tried harder to keep him happy.
06:07Men have needs, dear, she said, like she was explaining. Something complicated to a slow child.
06:15Lorraine's advice on marriage was always fascinating, considering her husband.
06:20Spent seven days a week on the golf course, specifically to avoid being in the same room as her.
06:26But sure, I was the. Problem. That first week was a blur. Vincent moved me to the guest room.
06:34He had documents drawn up, settlements. Proposed, timelines established.
06:41Everything was moving so fast and I felt like I was drowning. Everyone saw a.
06:46Woman whose world had just collapsed. A wife being thrown away after fifteen years of.
06:53Service. A victim who didn't see it coming. But here's the thing. What Vincent didn't know,
07:01what nobody knew. Was that I'd found something three years ago? Something buried in his own.
07:08Financial records. Something he thought was hidden forever. And I'd been quietly,
07:14patiently preparing ever since. Before we continue, if you're enjoying this story,
07:19please hit that subscribe button and tell me in the comments where. You're watching from and what
07:25time it is there. I read every single comment. Thank you. Back to the disaster. Within.
07:33A week of the announcement, Vincent had completely taken control. The guest room became my permanent
07:40residence in what. Used to be our home. My closet shrank from a walk-in to two small sections.
07:47He. Graciously allowed me to keep. The message was clear. This isn't your house anymore.
07:55Within two weeks, he started. Bringing her around. Brittany Sawyer, twenty-seven years old,
08:03worked at his company. Of. Course, she did. She had that Instagram perfect look. Blonde highlights,
08:12perfect nails, yoga pants that cost more than my. Weekly groceries. She walked into my kitchen like
08:19she owned it. Wore my apron, my grandmother's apron, while. Making smoothies in my blender.
08:27She was younger than my marriage, younger than my favorite handbag, but she made. Amazing smoothies,
08:33so I guess that's something. Vincent paraded her around like a trophy. They'd sit on my couch.
08:40Watch my television, eat off my plates. He'd put his arm around her right in front of me like I
08:46was
08:46furniture, like. I'd already disappeared. The humiliation escalated daily. First, he can lead my.
08:56Personal credit card. We need to separate finances, he said like he was being reasonable.
09:01Then the joint card. Then he suggested I should probably find somewhere else to stay while we
09:08sorted things out. My own home. And I was being. Asked to leave. Lorraine came over to help me pack.
09:17And by help, I mean she. Went through my belongings and decided what I deserved to keep.
09:23Old clothes, fine. Family photos, some of them. My. Grandmother's recipe box.
09:31Box. She hesitated on that one like she was considering claiming it for herself.
09:37What I was not. Allowed to take. Any jewelry Vincent had bought me over fifteen years.
09:44Any furniture. I'd picked out. Anything of value. Those were marital assets, Lorraine explained.
09:53And Vincent was entitled to them. She packed my things in garbage bags.
09:59Not boxes. Garbage bags. Like I was trash. Being taken out. Through all of this, I had one person I
10:09thought I could trust. Diane Holloway. We'd been friends since high school, twenty years of friendship
10:16through boyfriends and breakups and. Babies and everything in between. She was the first person I
10:23called after Vincent's announcement. She was so. Supportive, always checking in, always asking how
10:30I was holding up, always. Ready to listen. She'd come over with wine and let me cry on her shoulder.
10:38She told me I deserved better. She told me. Vincent was making a huge mistake, but something felt off.
10:46Little things. At first, Vincent seemed to know my plans. Before I made them. When I mentioned to
10:54Diane that I was thinking about fighting for the house, Tyler came home the next. Day saying,
11:00Dad told him it wouldn't work. When I told Diane I was looking at apartments in a specific.
11:06Neighborhood, Vincent made a comment about that exact area being too expensive for me.
11:11Then it clicked. Looking back, I should have seen it years ago. The way Diane always lit up when
11:18Vincent walked into the room. The. Way she compliment him just a little too much,
11:24laugh at his jokes just a little too hard. She always asked about. Him first whenever we talked.
11:32How's Vincent? How's the business? Is Vincent happy? She'd been carrying a torch for.
11:39My husband for 15 years. And Vincent, because he collected admirers, like some. People collect stamps,
11:48knew exactly how to use it. He made her feel special. Important, not like other women.
11:55He probably implied they'd get together after the divorce. Gave her just enough.
12:01Hoped to keep her loyal. My best friend was his spy. 20 years of friendship sold.
12:08Out for some flirting and empty promises. At least charge more, Diane. But the worst part wasn't
12:16Vincent. Wasn't Lorraine. Wasn't even Diane. The worst part was Tyler. My son saw. Everything.
12:27The girlfriend, the grandmother packing my bags, the way his father looked at me like I was nothing.
12:32Ann Vincent was working. Ann Vincent was working on him, dripping poison in his ear day after day.
12:38Your. Mom is making this difficult. I just want everyone to be happy. She's the one dragging this
12:45out. I'm trying to be. Fair, but she won't cooperate. Tyler started pulling away from me.
12:53Not angry exactly, just distant, confused. He. Didn't know who to believe.
13:01And his father was very, very convincing. I could lose the house. I could lose the.
13:09Money. I could lose everything. I'd spent 15 years building.
13:15But watching my son look at me like I was the problem.
13:17That was the knife. That was the wound that actually bled.
13:23I hired a lawyer. Nina Castellano, recommended by my old firm.
13:2852 years old, sharp as a razor. Absolutely no tolerance for nonsense.
13:35She reviewed my situation and laid out the battle plan. You helped build this.
13:41Business, she said. You're entitled to half of everything. The house, the company, the accounts.
13:49We fight. I. Looked at her for a long moment.
13:54What if I don't want to fight? Nah. Stared at me like I'd started speaking another.
14:01Language, like I'd suggested we send Vincent a thank you card and a fruit basket.
14:06She thought I was broken. Depressed, too beaten down to stand up for myself.
14:12She had no idea. I moved into a small apartment with Tyler.
14:19Two. Bedrooms, one bathroom, a kitchen the size of my old pantry.
14:23Half our boxes didn't even fit. They sat stacked in the.
14:28Corner of Tyler's room like a monument to how far we'd fallen.
14:33Meanwhile. Vincent posted photos with Brittany.
14:37New chapter, new energy. Blessed, he wrote.
14:42Lorraine commented underneath, so happy for you, sweetheart.
14:45You deserve joy, my sister called, furious. You need a.
14:51Shark lawyer. Take him for everything he's worth.
14:55Everyone had advice. Everyone thought they knew what I should.
14:59Do. Everyone saw a woman who'd given up, who couldn't fight, who was letting her husband walk
15:06all over her. Everyone was. Wrong.
15:10Here's the thing about being underestimated. People stop watching you.
15:15They stop being careful around you. They stop guarding their secrets.
15:20And that's exactly when you learn everything you need to know.
15:23Three years. That's how. Long I'd been carrying this secret.
15:30That's how long I'd known the truth about Vincent Mercer and his glittering.
15:34Glamorous, completely fake empire. It started on a random Tuesday night, three.
15:41Years before the divorce. Vincent was working late again.
15:45He was always working late by then, though I didn't.
15:49Yet know what that really meant. I was going through the company books, reconciling accounts,
15:55doing the. Unglamorous work that kept his business running.
15:59And I found something strange. A transfer to an account I didn't.
16:05Recognize, then another. Then a pattern.
16:09Money flowing out of our accounts into. Places I'd never seen before.
16:14I dug deeper. I stayed up until three o'clock in the morning, following the trail.
16:20What I. Found made my blood run cold.
16:24Vincent had been taking loans against everything we owned.
16:28The house, our beautiful house. That everyone admired, had three mortgages on it.
16:34The original loan of four hundred thousand. A second mortgage of three hundred and fifty thousand.
16:41Taken out four years ago. A third mortgage of another three hundred and fifty thousand.
16:46Taken out two. Years ago. Total owed one point one million dollars.
16:53Actual value of the house eight hundred and fifty thousand dollars.
16:57We were underwater by two hundred and fifty thousand dollars on a home I thought we owned outright.
17:02The business was even worse.
17:04Lines of credit maxed out at two hundred thousand dollars.
17:09Back taxes owed of eighty-five thousand dollars.
17:12Vendor debts of one hundred and twenty thousand.
17:15Equipment loans.
17:17Of seventy-five thousand.
17:19The company Vincent bragged about at every party.
17:22The company that.
17:24Was supposedly thriving, it was drowning in nearly half a million dollars of debt.
17:29Even the cars weren't real.
17:31All.
17:33Three were leased with balloon payments, coming due.
17:36We didn't own anything.
17:38We just had very expensive monthly.
17:42Obligations.
17:43I sat in my kitchen at three o'clock in the morning surrounded by printouts and did the math.
17:49Total debt.
17:51Approximately 1.9 million dollars.
17:54Total actual asset value, maybe 1.6 million dollars.
17:58We were.
17:59Three hundred thousand dollars in the hole, maybe more.
18:04But where had all the money gone?
18:06I kept.
18:08Digging.
18:09Over the following weeks, I traced every transaction I could find.
18:13And the picture that emerged was devastating.
18:17Cryptocurrency investments, one hundred and eighty thousand dollars.
18:22All lost.
18:23Gambling, seventy-five thousand dollars, gone.
18:26An apartment I didn't know about.
18:29Rented for a woman I didn't know about.
18:32Sixty thousand dollars in rent and furnishings.
18:36Lifestyle expenses that never made it.
18:39Home.
18:40Watches, suits, trips I was never invited on.
18:44Another eighty-five thousand.
18:46My husband.
18:48Wasn't building an empire.
18:50He was building a house of cards with borrowed cards that were also on fire.
18:55We looked.
18:57Rich the same way a mannequin looks alive.
19:00Convincing from a distance, completely hollow up close.
19:04My first.
19:06Instinct was to confront him, to scream, to cry, to demand answers.
19:11But I knew.
19:13Vincent.
19:14I'd watched him operate for years.
19:17If I confronted him, he'd manipulate me.
19:20He'd explain it away.
19:22Make me feel crazy for questioning him.
19:25He'd probably find a way to blame me for it.
19:28And worse, if he knew I knew, he.
19:31Might try to take control of my separate money, too.
19:35See, I'd always kept a little something of my own.
19:38My.
19:40Grandmother's voice in my head.
19:42A woman should have her own money.
19:44My IRA from my law firm years.
19:47I'd rolled it over.
19:49When I quit, but never touched it.
19:52By then, it had grown to about one hundred and eighty thousand dollars.
19:57That was mine.
19:59Earned from my job, separate property, under the law.
20:02And.
20:03Then there was grandma herself.
20:06She'd passed away when I was twenty-eight, and she'd left me three hundred and forty thousand dollars.
20:11Her will was specific.
20:14This money is for Alexis alone.
20:17I'd kept it in a separate account for six years, never commingling.
20:21It with Vincent's finances, never using it for household expenses.
20:25My grandmother kept her own account for fifty.
20:29Years.
20:30Not secret money, she'd always say, just mine.
20:34Smartest woman I ever.
20:36Knew.
20:38I had roughly five hundred and twenty thousand dollars that was completely, legally, separately.
20:44Mine.
20:44So, I didn't confront Vincent.
20:48Instead, I protected myself.
20:51I worked.
20:52With my uncle, a retired accountant, to create an irrevocable trust for Tyler.
20:58My IRA and my inheritance went into that.
21:01Trust.
21:02My name wasn't on it as a beneficiary.
21:06Vincent's name certainly.
21:08Wasn't on it.
21:09It was for Tyler's future.
21:12College, a first home, emergencies, and.
21:15It was untouchable.
21:18Then I documented everything.
21:20Every mortgage document.
21:22Every hidden account, every suspicious transaction.
21:26I printed copies and kept them at my sister's house.
21:30I put copies.
21:32In a safe deposit box.
21:35I saved everything on an encrypted drive.
21:37And then I waited.
21:39I knew Vincent would.
21:42Leave eventually.
21:43Men like him always do.
21:46They get bored or they find someone.
21:48Younger or they decide they deserve more.
21:51I just had to be ready when it happened.
21:54Three years of waiting.
21:56Three.
21:58Years of watching him dig the hole deeper.
22:01Three years of smiling at dinner parties while knowing our entire life.
22:05Was built on quicksand.
22:07I got very good at patience and very good at pretending.
22:11I didn't know my husband was financially drowning us both.
22:15When Vincent finally asked for the divorce when he demanded.
22:18The house, the cars, the business, everything, I almost laughed out loud.
22:24He wasn't asking for assets.
22:26He was.
22:28Demanding debt.
22:30He just didn't know it yet.
22:32Back in the present, I sat across from Mina Castellano and placed three.
22:37Binders on her desk.
22:39Three years of evidence, every mortgage document, every.
22:43Loan statement, every hidden account.
22:46She read in silence for almost an hour.
22:49When she finally looked up, her.
22:52Expression had completely transformed.
22:55You've known about this for three years.
22:58I was waiting for him to leave.
23:00I knew he.
23:02Would eventually.
23:04And when he demanded everything, he demanded all the debt.
23:07He just doesn't understand that yet.
23:11Nah.
23:12Leaned back in her chair.
23:14The pity was gone from her eyes.
23:16The concern was gone.
23:18What replaced it was something.
23:21Like awe.
23:23So when you sign over the assets, I walk away clean.
23:26He gets the.
23:28Mortgages, the business debts, the lease obligations, all of it becomes his sole.
23:34Responsibility.
23:35And your inheritance, your retirement account, separate property, never commingled, legally.
23:42Protected, sitting safely in a trust for my son.
23:45Mina was quiet for a long moment.
23:48Then she smiled.
23:50A slow.
23:52Dangerous smile.
23:53Mrs. Dunst, she said, I believe I owe you an apology.
23:58I thought.
23:59You'd given up.
24:01I smiled back.
24:03Everyone thinks that.
24:05That's kind of the point.
24:07Nah.
24:08Went from looking at me like a lost.
24:11Kitten to looking at me like a chess grandmaster.
24:14I prefer grandmaster.
24:16Better outfit.
24:18The trap was already.
24:20Built.
24:21The numbers were verified.
24:24The documentation was airtight.
24:26All I had to do now was let Vincent think he was.
24:30Winning.
24:31And nobody nobody does gracious loser better than a woman who's been.
24:36Practicing for fifteen years.
24:38The next three months were a master class in acting.
24:42I.
24:43Became exactly what everyone expected me to be.
24:47Broken, defeated, barely holding.
24:50On.
24:51I showed up to mediation sessions with red eyes and trembling hands.
24:56I spoke softly, hesitantly, like a woman.
24:59Who'd lost all her confidence.
25:02I asked for so little that even the mediator seemed uncomfortable.
25:06I just want.
25:08Enough to start over, I said during our second mediation.
25:12I'm not trying to be difficult.
25:14I know the business is his.
25:17Life's work.
25:19I know the house means everything to him.
25:22I don't want to tear our family apart more than it already.
25:26Is.
25:26I requested a settlement of fifty thousand dollar cash, my personal belongings, shared.
25:33Custody of Tyler.
25:35That was it.
25:36Vincent agreed immediately.
25:39He was probably expecting me to fight for half of.
25:42Everything.
25:44That's what any reasonable lawyer would demand.
25:47Instead, I was asking for crumbs.
25:50He looked at me.
25:52Across that mediation table with something almost like pity,
25:55like I was a wounded animal he was graciously putting.
25:58Out of its misery.
26:00I deserved an Oscar for that performance, or at least a Golden Globe.
26:05I was given the role of a.
26:07Lifetime, and my only audience was my lying, cheating, soon to be bankrupt.
26:12Ex-husband.
26:14With each passing week, Vincent's arrogance grew.
26:17He stopped being careful, stopped pretending to be.
26:21The reasonable one.
26:23He started telling everyone who would listen that I hadn't even fought.
26:27She just gave up, he told.
26:30His golf buddies.
26:32I offered her a fair settlement, and she took it without a word.
26:36Lorraine was even worse.
26:38She.
26:39Bragged at her book club, at her church group, at every social gathering she attended.
26:45Vincent is keeping everything.
26:47That woman didn't get a dime.
26:49I always knew she wasn't strong enough for my son.
26:53To celebrate his upcoming victory.
26:56Vincent bought himself a new watch, fifteen thousand dollars.
27:00I know, because I saw the charge on the.
27:03Business account.
27:05He was still using company money for personal expenses.
27:09Still digging that hole deeper.
27:11He wore.
27:12It to our next mediation session, making sure I noticed.
27:17He also took Brittany to dinner at La Messon, the French.
27:21Restaurant where we'd celebrated our tenth anniversary.
27:24He posted photos on social media.
27:27Life is good when you're.
27:30With the right person, he wrote.
27:32The right person.
27:34He meant the person who didn't know about his debt yet.
27:37Meanwhile, Brittany had started redecorating my house, new furniture in the living room,
27:42new art on the walls.
27:43She even painted my kitchen gray.
27:46She painted it gray.
27:48I spent three weeks.
27:51Choosing that sage green.
27:53Three weeks of paint samples and lighting tests and driving myself crazy trying to get the.
27:59Perfect shade.
28:00And she painted over it with builder grade gray.
28:03Like it was.
28:05Nothing.
28:07Gray like her personality, like her future with Vincent once she found out he was broke.
28:12Very fitting.
28:14Actually.
28:15Diane kept calling, fishing for information under the guise of friendship.
28:20I played along perfectly.
28:22How are you holding up, she'd ask, her voice dripping with fake concern.
28:26I just want it to be over, I'd tell her.
28:30Making my voice crack slightly.
28:33I can't fight anymore.
28:35I don't have the energy.
28:37Within hours, Vincent would know.
28:40I.
28:40Could practically see him relaxing, letting his guard down even further.
28:46Diane thought she was playing me.
28:48She.
28:49Was actually just being a messenger service.
28:53Not a very expensive one either.
28:55But while the adults were.
28:58Playing their games, Tyler was watching.
29:01And my son, my smart, observant.
29:04Wonderful son, was starting to notice things that didn't add up.
29:08He noticed his dad's new $15,000 watch, but heard.
29:13Vincent tell him they couldn't afford the school trip to Washington, D.C.
29:17He noticed Britney's shopping bags piling.
29:20Up in the foyer, but heard Vincent complain about money being tight.
29:24He noticed the disconnect between the.
29:27Lifestyle his father was projecting and the excuses he kept making.
29:31One evening.
29:33Tyler came to my tiny apartment and sat down at my second-hand kitchen table.
29:38He looked at me with those serious eyes, so.
29:41Much like his father's, but with something Vincent had lost long ago.
29:46Honesty, Mom, he said quietly.
29:49Is Dad.
29:51Actually rich?
29:52I looked at my son for a long moment.
29:55What do you think?
29:57He was quiet, processing.
30:00I think something's.
30:02Not right.
30:03I think he's pretending.
30:05I reached across the table and squeezed his hand.
30:09Trust me, just wait a little.
30:12Longer.
30:13My fifteen-year-old figured out something was wrong before two lawyers.
30:17And a certified accountant did.
30:20I should bill his college fund for consulting fees.
30:23Behind the scenes, Nina was.
30:27Preparing our legal strategy with surgical precision.
30:30The main divorce agreement stated clearly that I was.
30:34Relinquishing all claims to marital property.
30:37The house, the business, the vehicles, everything would go to.
30:42Vincent.
30:43In exchange, I would receive my modest cash settlement and walk away.
30:47But attached to that agreement was an addendum, a detailed liability disclosure statement.
30:53Every debt, every.
30:56Mortgage, every loan, every obligation tied to those assets.
31:00When Vincent.
31:02Signed for all assets, he would be legally assuming all liabilities.
31:06The mortgages would become his sole.
31:09Responsibility.
31:11The business debts would transfer entirely to him.
31:14The lease obligations on the cars would be his.
31:18Problem alone.
31:20It was all there in black and white.
31:22Legal, proper, devastating.
31:25Legal documents are like poetry.
31:28Nah, told me.
31:31Boring, expensive poetry that.
31:34Can ruin someone's life.
31:36My favorite kind.
31:38Two weeks before the final hearing, Harold Whitfield, Vincent's.
31:43Lawyer, ho, called Nina with concerns.
31:46My client is assuming significant assets, Harold said carefully.
31:51I'd.
31:52Like to request a full financial audit before we finalize.
31:56Just to verify everything, Nina kept her voice.
32:00Neutral.
32:01Of course, we'll provide whatever documentation you need, but when Harold brought this to Vincent,
32:06my.
32:07Soon-to-be ex-husband shut it down immediately.
32:10No audits, Vincent told him.
32:13I built that company.
32:15I know.
32:17Exactly what it's worth.
32:18I'm not paying for some accountant to tell me what I already know.
32:23Harold pushed back.
32:25I.
32:27Strongly recommend we verify the asset values before you sign.
32:31This is a significant no.
32:33Vincent cut him off.
32:35Brittany wants this done.
32:37I want this done.
32:39No more delays.
32:41Harold had been.
32:43Practicing law for over 30 years.
32:46He knew when a client was about to make a mistake.
32:49He also knew he couldn't force.
32:52Someone to take his advice.
32:55He presented Vincent with a waiver, a document acknowledging that Harold had.
33:00Recommended an independent financial review and that Vincent was declining against counsel's advice.
33:05Vincent signed.
33:07It without reading it.
33:09Just like he'd sign everything else without reading it, never underestimate the power of an.
33:15Impatient girlfriend to make a man skip the fine print.
33:18Brittany was worth millions to me in legal strategy.
33:22Anyway, the night before the hearing, Vincent sent me a text message.
33:26Thank you for not making this ugly.
33:29I stared.
33:30At that message for a long time.
33:3315 years of marriage, 15 years of building.
33:37His business, raising his son, managing his life, and he was thanking me for not.
33:42Making things difficult for him while he threw me away.
33:45I typed back, I just want what's best for Tyler, what was.
33:50Best for Tyler.
33:52His trust fund, his future secured, and a father who was.
33:56About to learn the most expensive lesson of his life.
34:00Nina called me that evening, Thursday at 9 o'clock a.m. final.
34:04Hearing.
34:06Judge Patricia Holden, are you ready?
34:09I looked around my small apartment, the second-hand furniture, the.
34:13Boxes still unpacked in the corner, the tiny kitchen I'd painted sage green because it reminded me of hope.
34:19I've.
34:21Been ready for three years.
34:23Three years of waiting, and it was finally here.
34:26I felt.
34:28Like a kid on Christmas morning if Christmas morning involved divorce court and financial revenge.
34:34Thursday morning.
34:359 a.m. Vincent would walk into that courtroom expecting to collect his prize.
34:40He had no idea he was about to.
34:43Inherit a financial avalanche, one he'd signed for himself.
34:47And the best part.
34:49He'd asked for it in writing with witnesses.
34:52If you've made it this far, you already know something satisfying is.
34:56Coming.
34:57Hit that like button if you're ready for Vincent to get what he deserves.
35:02And if you haven't subscribed.
35:04Yet, what are you waiting for?
35:07I've got more stories where this came from.
35:10Trust me.
35:11Now, let's finish this.
35:14Thursday.
35:15April 17th, 9 o'clock a.m. courtroom 4B.
35:19I remember every detail of that morning.
35:22The way the sunlight came through the tall windows, the smell of old wood and floor polish, the quiet murmur
35:28of
35:29lawyers shuffling papers.
35:31This was where fifteen years of marriage would officially end.
35:35And where three years of patience would.
35:38Finally pay off.
35:40Vincent arrived first.
35:42Of course, he was wearing his best suit, the charcoal Armani I'd helped him pick.
35:47Out for a client dinner three years ago.
35:50His new watch caught the light as he shook hands with Harold.
35:54He looked confident.
35:56Relaxed, like a man about to close a very favorable deal.
36:00Brittany was waiting in the hallway.
36:03She wasn't allowed in.
36:05The courtroom, but she wanted to be there for moral support.
36:09I caught a glimpse of her through the door.
36:12Perfect.
36:13Makeup, designer bag, scrolling through her phone like this was just another boring appointment.
36:19Lorraine was there.
36:20Two, sitting in the gallery.
36:23She dressed up for the occasion, probably planning to take Vincent to a celebratory lunch.
36:29Afterward.
36:30She looked at me when I walked in and gave me this little smile,
36:33the kind you give someone you've already beaten.
36:37I arrived a few minutes after Vincent.
36:40Simple navy dress, no jewelry.
36:43Hair pulled back in a low bun.
36:45I looked tired, defeated, like a woman who had nothing left to fight for.
36:51Perfect.
36:52I
36:53looked like someone who'd given up on life and fashion simultaneously.
36:58Very convincing.
37:00I should really teach acting.
37:02Classes, Judge Patricia Holden entered.
37:05And everyone rose.
37:07She was in her early.
37:10Sixties, silver hair, reading glasses, perched on her nose,
37:14thirty years on the family court bench.
37:16She'd seen every.
37:18Trick, every manipulation, every lie that divorcing couples could throw at each other.
37:24Nothing surprised her.
37:26Anymore.
37:27She reviewed the case file briefly, then looked up.
37:30Mercer versus Mercer.
37:33Final dissolution hearing.
37:35I
37:36understand the parties have reached an agreement.
37:40Harold stood first.
37:42Yes, your honor.
37:44My client Vincent Mercer is
37:47assuming all marital assets, including the family residence,
37:50the real estate development business, and all associated
37:53vehicles.
37:55Vehicles.
37:56In exchange, Mrs. Dunst receives a cash settlement of $50,000.
38:01Nina rose beside me.
38:03That's correct, your honor.
38:06My client agrees to relinquish all claims to these assets.
38:10And accepts the proposed settlement terms.
38:13Judge Holden's eyes moved to me.
38:16She studied my face for a moment.
38:18Looking for signs of coercion.
38:21I imagine signs that I was being pressured into a bad deal.
38:25Mrs. Dunst, she said, I need.
38:28To confirm that you understand what you're agreeing to today.
38:32You're giving up your claim to substantial property.
38:35The family home, the business you helped build.
38:38Are you certain this is what you want?
38:41I kept my voice soft, slightly.
38:44Unsteady.
38:45Yes, your honor, I understand.
38:48And you're entering this agreement.
38:51Voluntarily?
38:53No one is pressuring you?
38:55No, your honor.
38:57I look down at my hands.
38:59Then back up at her.
39:01I just want my husband to have everything he asked for.
39:05I want this to be over.
39:07The judge.
39:09Studied me for another long moment.
39:11I could practically see her internal debate, whether to push harder, whether.
39:16To order a continuance, whether to protect me from what looked like a terrible decision.
39:21But I was represented.
39:23By counsel.
39:25I was answering clearly.
39:27I was an adult woman making my own choice.
39:31Very well, she said finally.
39:34Let's proceed.
39:35The clerk distributed the final documents, page after page of legal.
39:40Language, signatures required on every third page.
39:44Vincent signed eagerly.
39:46Barely glancing at what he was agreeing to.
39:49He wanted this done.
39:51He wanted to get back to his new life with his new.
39:55Girlfriend and his new freedom.
39:57I signed slowly, deliberately.
40:00Every stroke of my.
40:02Pen was careful and precise.
40:05This was the moment I'd been waiting three years for.
40:07I was going to savor it.
40:10Across the.
40:12Courtroom, I saw Vincent glance at Lorraine and smile.
40:16She nodded back approvingly.
40:18In the hallway, his phone.
40:21Buzzed, probably Brittany sending encouragement.
40:24He checked his phone in court during his own divorce hearing.
40:27That's the kind of man he was.
40:30Meanwhile, Harold Whitfield was doing what good lawyers do, reviewing the.
40:35Complete document package one final time.
40:38Main agreement signed, asset.
40:41Schedule signed, settlement terms signed.
40:44Then he reached the addendum.
40:47Liability disclosure statement.
40:49I watched his face as he read, watched the confusion flicker across his features.
40:55Watched him flip back a page, then forward again like he was hoping he'd misread something.
41:00He hadn't.
41:02Harold's.
41:03Face went pale.
41:05He leaned toward Vincent, trying to be discreet.
41:08Sir, he whispered.
41:11We need to talk.
41:13Vincent.
41:14Waved him off, still basking in his victory.
41:17Not now.
41:19We're almost done.
41:21Sir Harold's voice was more urgent.
41:24You're assuming all debt, Vincent turned to look at him.
41:27What?
41:29The liability disclosure?
41:31Harold whispered.
41:33Papers rustling as he pointed.
41:35The mortgages, the business liens, it's all here.
41:39You're assuming personal liability.
41:42For everything.
41:44For the first time, Vincent actually looked at what he'd signed.
41:48I watched his eyes scan the.
41:51Numbers, watched the color drain from his face.
41:54House, 1.1 million dollars owed.
41:57Market value 850,000.
42:01Business 480,000 in combined debts.
42:05Vehicles, 115,000 in lease obligations.
42:09Additional personal liabilities, 200,000.
42:13Total debt approximately 1.9 million dollars.
42:17Net value of everything he just claimed.
42:20Negative $300,000.
42:23He hadn't won the lottery.
42:25He'd won the bill for it.
42:27Vincent stood up abruptly.
42:30His chair scraping against the floor.
42:33This isn't right.
42:34He looked at me, then at the judge, then back at the papers.
42:38She hid this from me.
42:40This is fraud.
42:42Judge Holden's voice was sharp.
42:45Mr. Mercer, sit down.
42:47These numbers are.
42:49Fake.
42:51Vincent insisted, his voice rising.
42:54She manipulated the documents.
42:57This is Mr. Mercer.
42:58The judge's tone left no room for argument.
43:02Sit down, he.
43:04Sat, but his hands were shaking.
43:07His confident smile was gone, replaced by.
43:11Something that looked a lot like panic.
43:13Judge Holden looked at the documents in front of her, then at Vincent.
43:18Mr. Mercer, I'm looking at the liability disclosure statement attached to this agreement.
43:24These are debts associated.
43:27With assets you are claiming.
43:29Assets in your name, your business, your property.
43:33She fixed him with a hard stare.
43:35Are you telling this court that you don't know your own financial situation?
43:40Silence.
43:41Watching Vincent try to explain why he didn't know about his own debts was like watching a cat explain why
43:46they're say.
43:48Broken vase on the floor.
43:50Fascinating and completely unconvincing.
43:53Harold cleared his throat.
43:55Your Honor, I should.
43:57Note that I advise my client to conduct an independent financial review prior to this hearing.
44:03He declined.
44:05I have.
44:07Documentation.
44:08He produced the waiver, the one Vincent had signed without reading, the one that said in clear.
44:14Legal language that Harold had recommended a full audit, and Vincent had refused.
44:19Judge Holden reviewed it.
44:22Briefly.
44:23So, Mr. Mercer was advised to verify these figures.
44:27He chose not to.
44:29He signed a waiver acknowledging that choice.
44:32She looked at Vincent.
44:34Is that correct?
44:36Vincent was staring at the
44:39waiver like it was a snake that had just bitten him.
44:41I didn't, I thought.
44:44Is that your signature, Mr. Mercer?
44:47A long.
44:48Pause.
44:50Yes.
44:51Then you assumed this risk voluntarily.
44:54Judge Holden's voice was.
44:56Matter of fact.
44:59You had the opportunity to investigate.
45:02You chose not to.
45:04The agreement stands.
45:06Vincent turned to me.
45:08Desperation breaking through his composure.
45:11You knew.
45:12His voice cracked.
45:14You knew about all of this.
45:17I met his.
45:19Eyes calmly.
45:21I was your bookkeeper for eleven years, Vincent.
45:24I knew about everything.
45:26His face cycled through.
45:29Emotions faster than I could count.
45:32Confusion, rage, betrayal, fear, and…
45:36Finally the one I'd been waiting for.
45:39Realization.
45:40The understanding that he'd done this to himself.
45:43I want to withdraw.
45:45The agreement, Vincent said, turning back to the judge.
45:49I didn't understand what I was signing.
45:52This isn't fair.
45:54Judge Holden shook her head.
45:56Mr. Mercer, you signed documents before this court stating you understood and agreed to all.
46:02Terms.
46:03You were represented by competent counsel.
46:06You declined additional review.
46:09Your wife did not hide anything.
46:12These are your debts, your mortgages, your…
46:15Obligations.
46:17She paused.
46:19The agreement is final.
46:21The gavel came down.
46:23Mrs. Dunst, you have your settlement.
46:27Mr. Mercer, you have the assets as agreed.
46:30Along with all associated liabilities.
46:34This marriage is dissolved.
46:36I stood.
46:38Smoothed my dress, picked up my purse.
46:41Then I looked at Vincent one last time.
46:44He was slumped in his chair, papers scattered in front of him,
46:47his whole world collapsing around him.
46:50You said.
46:51You wanted everything except Tyler, I said quietly.
46:55I gave you exactly what you asked for.
46:58I walked out of that.
47:00Courtroom without looking back.
47:02In the hallway, I could hear Vincent's voice rising, yelling at Harold, demanding to.
47:08Know how this happened, threatening lawsuits.
47:11Harold's calm responses.
47:14I.
47:14Told you to get an audit.
47:17I have it in writing.
47:19You refused.
47:21Through the glass doors, I saw Brittany's face change as.
47:25She listened.
47:27Saw her look at Vincent.
47:29Really?
47:30Look at him.
47:32And see something other than the successful businessman.
47:36She'd thought she was getting.
47:38She was gone before I reached the elevator.
47:41Moving fast, heels clicking on the.
47:44Marble floor, not looking back.
47:47Brittany's exit was faster than her entrance into my marriage.
47:51At least she.
47:53Was consistent.
47:55I stepped outside into the April sunshine.
47:58The sky was blue.
48:00The air was warm.
48:02Somewhere behind me, my ex-husband was screaming at his lawyer about fairness and fraud and how.
48:08None of this was his fault.
48:10Ahead of me was a new life.
48:13Smaller than before, simpler, but completely entirely mine.
48:17The collapse happened faster than I expected.
48:20Within two weeks, Brittany had moved out of the house, packed her.
48:25Things in the middle of the night, left a note that said,
48:27this isn't what I signed up for.
48:29The gray kitchen sat.
48:32Empty.
48:33Within a month, Vincent tried to sell the house.
48:36But when you owe more than something is worth, there are no.
48:40Buyers, just banks calling about missed payments and realtors suggesting short.
48:45Sales.
48:47Within two months, the business started defaulting.
48:51Vendors filed lawsuits.
48:53The line of credit was frozen.
48:55The company that Vincent had spent 15 years building.
48:59The company I had spent.
49:01Eleven years supporting was crumbling into dust.
49:05Within three months, Vincent was meeting with bankruptcy attorneys.
49:09The.
49:10Man who'd once bragged about his empire was now calculating which assets he could protect from creditors.
49:16The answer.
49:18Was almost nothing.
49:20Lorraine's perfect son was calling family members asking.
49:23For loans, showing up at relatives' houses with excuses and explanations.
49:29Nobody knew about the debt.
49:32Alexis must have hidden it somehow.
49:34I was tricked.
49:36But the documents told a different.
49:39Story.
49:40The mortgages were in his name.
49:43The loans were in his name, the gambling debts, the crypto losses, the secret.
49:48Apartment, all his choices, all his signatures.
49:52I heard that Lorraine's Christmas newsletter that year was very.
49:56Short.
49:57Vincent is exploring new opportunities.
50:00Yes, opportunities in debt restructuring.
50:04The parallel.
50:06Conflicts resolve themselves with a kind of poetic symmetry.
50:09Diane called me about a week after the hearing.
50:13Her.
50:14Voice was shaking.
50:15I had no idea things were this bad.
50:19I'm so sorry, Alexis.
50:22I.
50:23Never meant for I thought Vincent and I I didn't answer, didn't respond, didn't.
50:28Give her the closure she was looking for.
50:31Some bridges aren't meant to be repaired.
50:34Some friendships don't deserve.
50:36A second chance.
50:38Twenty years of history betrayed for a wink and empty promises.
50:42From a man who used everyone around him.
50:46She tried calling three more times, then.
50:49She stopped.
50:50I imagine she's still waiting for Vincent to notice her.
50:54She'll be waiting a long time.
50:57Lorraine.
50:58Tried a different approach, going through Tyler.
51:01Tell your mother I didn't know about the money problems.
51:05Tell her.
51:06I'm sorry for how I treated her.
51:09Tell her I want to talk.
51:11Tyler looked at his grandmother, the woman who'd packed his.
51:15Mother's belongings in garbage bags, who'd called his mother worthless, who'd sided with
51:20his father without a single.
51:22Question, and said, Mom's busy building her life.
51:26She doesn't have time for excuses.
51:28Lorraine wanted forgiveness.
51:31I.
51:32Wanted peace.
51:34Guess which one of us got what we wanted.
51:37Tyler, my wonderful, smart, observant son.
51:41He finally.
51:43Understood everything.
51:44Not because I explained it, but because he figured it out himself.
51:49He saw the court documents.
51:51He heard his father's excuses.
51:54He watched Brittany leave.
51:56Watch Lorraine scramble.
51:58Watch the whole facade.
52:01Collapse.
52:02One evening, about a month after the divorce, he sat with me in my small apartment.
52:07The one with the sage.
52:10Green kitchen.
52:11The one with the second-hand furniture and the boxes finally unpacked.
52:16You waited three.
52:18Years, he said quietly.
52:20You knew this whole time and you just waited.
52:23I wanted to make sure you were protected.
52:26I told.
52:28Him whatever happened between your father and me.
52:31I needed to know you'd be okay.
52:33The trust fund.
52:35Five hundred and twenty thousand dollars.
52:39Safe and untouchable.
52:40He was quiet for a moment.
52:43Then he hugged me.
52:45Really hugged me.
52:46The kind of hug I hadn't gotten from.
52:49My fifteen-year-old son in months.
52:52The kind that said, I understand.
52:55The kind that.
52:57Said, I'm proud of you.
52:59Fifteen-year-old boys don't usually hug their mothers voluntarily.
53:03I knew I'd done something.
53:06Right.
53:07My fifty thousand dollar settlement went toward getting established.
53:11First month's rent.
53:13Security deposit, basic furniture that wasn't falling apart.
53:17It wasn't luxury, but it was stability.
53:21The trust fund.
53:23Stayed exactly where it was.
53:25Tyler's future, college, may be a first home.
53:29Someday, a safety net that nobody could take from him.
53:33And me, I enrolled in interior design courses at the community.
53:37College.
53:38College.
53:39The dream I'd put on hold when I was twenty-three to help Vincent build his empire.
53:44I was finally building my own.
53:46I.
53:48Started small.
53:49My first real client was a woman named Sandra, fifty-two years old, just.
53:55Ending a twenty-eight-year marriage.
53:58She was standing in her empty new apartment, looking lost when she asked me,
54:02How do?
54:03You start over?
54:05I thought about it for a moment.
54:07One room at a time, one color at a time, one day at a time.
54:12We painted.
54:13Her kitchen sage green.
54:16She cried when she saw it.
54:18Happy tears, she said.
54:20The color of new beginnings.
54:23About three months after the divorce was finalized.
54:26Vincent showed up at my apartment.
54:29I barely recognized him.
54:31He'd lost weight.
54:33Not the healthy kind.
54:35Dark circles under his eyes.
54:38His suit was wrinkled.
54:40His.
54:42Watch was gone.
54:43He looked like a man who'd been through a war and lost.
54:47He stood in my doorway, and for a moment, I.
54:51Almost felt sorry for him.
54:53Almost.
54:54I didn't know it was this bad, he said.
54:58His voice was.
54:59I made mistakes.
55:01I know.
55:03That now.
55:04But I didn't mean for any of this to happen.
55:08I leaned against my doorframe and looked at him.
55:11Really.
55:12Looked at him.
55:14This man I'd loved for almost half my life.
55:16This man who'd.
55:19Thrown me away like garbage.
55:21This man who was now drowning in the consequences.
55:25Of his own choices.
55:27Can we talk?
55:29He asked.
55:31Maybe we can figure something out.
55:33I could I don't know.
55:35Maybe we.
55:37Could.
55:38He couldn't even finish the sentence.
55:41Couldn't bring himself to ask for what he actually wanted.
55:44Help.
55:46My.
55:47Help.
55:49After everything.
55:50You asked for everything except Tyler, I said calmly.
55:54You got exactly what you wanted.
55:57Alexis, please.
55:59Goodbye.
56:01Vincent.
56:02I closed the door.
56:04He stood in the hallway for ten.
56:06Minutes.
56:08I know, because I watched through the peephole while eating ice cream.
56:12Best show I'd ever seen.
56:15Five.
56:16Stars.
56:18Would watch again.
56:19That evening, after Tyler went to bed, I sat in my.
56:24Small living room and looked at my grandmother's photo on the shelf.
56:27The recipe box was next to it.
56:30The one thing.
56:32Lorraine had almost taken.
56:34The one thing that mattered most.
56:37You were right about everything, Grandma, I said.
56:41Quietly.
56:42Keep your own money.
56:44Know your worth.
56:46And never let anyone make you feel small.
56:49The apartment was quiet.
56:51Small, nothing like the house I'd lived in for fifteen years, but it was mine.
56:56Every.
56:58Paint color, every piece of furniture, every decision, mine, and for the first time in longer
57:03than I could remember, I.
57:05Was free.
57:07Thank you so much for watching.
57:09More of my most gripping stories are already on your screen.
57:13Click one now and don't miss the best part.
57:16You will love it.
57:18See you in the next.
57:19Don't miss the rest.
57:19So, let's see.
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