Chapter 15 - Delphine’s defense
Delphine testified in civil discovery.
“I believed I was building an equitable interest.”
“Based on what?”
“Ronan repeatedly called the renovations ours.”
Did I?
Probably.
People say:
Our kitchen.
Our pool.
Our house.
That is not a deed.
Then:
“He told me to make the place my own.”
True.
Again:
Not conveyance.
Then the memo.
“Why insert his signature?”
“To show he approved the underlying expenditures.”
“Why place it beneath language estimating an 18.5% equity participation?”
“It was a summary.”
“Did he approve 18.5%?”
“I believed he did.”
“How?”
“He never objected.”
“Did he ever see that memo?”
Silence.
“No.”
Then Maribel’s bedroom.
“Why convert it?”
“Design concept only.”
“Did Ronan approve?”
“No.”
“Did Maribel?”
“She’s a child.”
There was her mistake.
A child does not control title.
But a parent gets to decide whether a child’s bedroom becomes a guest suite.
May you like
She had bypassed the only person whose approval mattered.
Me.
