PART 10 — The Aftermath of the Storm
After Sabine and Jons left, an eerie silence lingered in the living room. Mr. Houtman placed the official file on the table and patted my shoulder kindly.
"You made the right decision, Thomas," the lawyer said. "It will be a long and legally complex road to set everything completely right, but the foundation has been laid. They won't be able to make a single move without the court watching."
I nodded gratefully. "Thank you, Houtman. Without your help, I never would have known."
After the lawyer also left and I thanked Mrs. De Vries for her testimony with a warm smile and a jar of homemade jam, I was left alone with Noah. My grandson sat on the couch, looking at me with large, concerned eyes.
"Grandpa..." he began softly. "Are mom and dad going to be punished now?"
I sat down next to him, put my arm around his shoulder, and smiled gently. "No, Noah. They aren't being punished in the sense of going to prison. But they will have to learn that you shouldn't treat other people badly, and that you cannot build on things and money that don't belong to you. And you know what the best part is? You don't have to worry about anything. As long as I live, I will take care of you."
Noah smiled with relief and picked up the wrapped gift that had rolled under the table. He handed it to me with both hands. "Here, Grandpa. I made this at school. It's a drawing of the two of us in the garden."
I accepted the package, carefully tore it open, and unrolled the drawing. It showed two figures: a large one and a small one, next to a house with a red tile roof and a big tree in the garden. It was simple, but it touched my heart deeper than all the money in the world ever could.
The days that followed played out like a movie. Jons and Sabine indeed turned out to be up to their necks in financial trouble. Banks and creditors seized the property at Lindelaan immediately when the court's attachment became effective. Within a week, they had to leave the house. They moved in temporarily with a distant cousin of Sabine's, because no other family member was willing to take them in after news of their deception spread like wildfire through the family.
Jons tried calling me a few more times, begging for financial support and to drop the lawsuit. But I stopped answering the phone. The line had been drawn. Love doesn't mean enduring everything; true love also means setting boundaries and facing the truth.
