Chapter 12 - DEREK LOST HIS JOB
Derek’s employer concluded its internal review.
He had violated conflict-of-interest policies.
Failed to disclose his Meridian investment.
Used company personnel inappropriately in private financial matters.
Created reputational and governance risk.
He was terminated.
Not because I requested it.
Not because the assault automatically required it.
The company made its own decision based on its policies and evidence.
Derek’s income dropped dramatically.
That affected temporary support calculations.
The court did not require him to pay imaginary income forever.
It did examine whether he was voluntarily underemployed.
He found another job eight months later.
Lower title.
Smaller company.
Substantially lower salary.
Real consequences.
But he worked.
He continued therapy.
Completed intervention programming.
Complied with probation.
His supervised visits with Lily expanded gradually.
Eventually, after professional review and sustained compliance, he received unsupervised daytime parenting time.
I hated the first one.
Then the second.
By the fifth, Lily returned happy.
That did not erase what he did to me.
May you like
It meant he was demonstrating safer parenting.
I had to let both truths coexist.
