The Storm Before the Calm: Chapter 15

Keeping up appearances for your kids is so hard. So, so hard. You know like how in the movies they show a mother receiving some form of bad news, then her kid comes up from behind so she quickly wipes away her tears and smiles like everything is fine? That’s not one of those unrealistic clichés. You just have to be a parent, and then it’s a matter of when, not if, it will happen to you.

 

A day in Malta was still on the books, with the drive there that very same evening. Everything was packed, it was starting to get dark, so off we went.

 

We were already in contact with a lawyer we knew. Poor chap, receiving a call after-hours on the eve of a public holiday. But we had no time to waste to know our options; the extension was set to expire in just over 24 hours.

 

And then, he called.

 

We had already disembarked the ferry but we were still in the middle of a long drive in the mainland, in the dark. And all appearances were thrown out the window. Thank goodness they were half-asleep, half-absorbed with their tablet, because the insults we threw at him before he could say anything would have made Samuel Jackson wet himself. It wasn’t our finest moment, but could you blame us? We were hard done, and I was at the “angry” section of the emotional rollercoaster.

 

As bluntly as one can be, he offered to give us back what we paid him. No explanation for his act of cowardice, nothing. Fine; we hung up so we could regroup and look at our next moves once we reached our destination and the girls were asleep.

 

10pm, and we’re on a call with the poor lawyer. We could file an injunction letter prior to next day’s close-of-business to force the sale, but it would need to be before noon and at an extra fee since it was a public holiday when the courts were closed. Lucky us.

 

I got back to him, telling him that we were willing to meet the following morning without legal action if he was ready to reimburse not just what we paid him, but also all notary, architect and related expenses.

 

He did not object; we agreed on a time and place for the following day for the final showdown.