Her face tightened instantly. “I’m her mother.”
“That’s not what I asked,” he replied.
Melissa’s father-in-law, Frank, finally spoke from the doorway. “We were told Melissa owned this place together with her sister.”
I looked directly at him. “She lied.”
Melissa spun toward me angrily. “Don’t you dare humiliate me in front of my in-laws.”
“You humiliated yourself,” I said coldly. “You moved strangers into my bedroom while I was on a plane.”
Officer Daniels asked Melissa whether she had ever legally lived there, paid rent, signed a lease, or received written permission to occupy the home.
The answer to every question was no.
My mother kept interrupting, insisting family arrangements worked differently, insisting I had always been difficult, insisting Melissa needed support after an argument with her husband. ParentingStress Relief
Then the officer asked Melissa whether she had any proof of ownership.
