On a rainy and windy January evening and into the early morning hours of the next day, my safe and comfortable world as I knew it came crashing down around me. During a "meeting" with my sister and brother-in-law (our partners on a joint project), hidden truths and ulterior motives began to be exposed and my world imploded.
The "meeting" was held in our home. For over six hours my husband and I sat in stunned silence as my sister and brother-in-law hurled false and vicious accusations at us. We were completely caught off guard—too shocked and blindsided to even react enough to demand they leave our home. Any attempt to defend ourselves against their false accusations was immediately shut down. The verbal attacks (most directed specifically at me), were relentless and lasted until the wee hours of the next morning.
It was almost 1:30 a.m. when my sister and brother-in-law finally decided to leave our home. The close sibling relationship I trusted in, relied upon, and thought to be loyal, honest and true—gone. I was shaken to the very core of my being. I felt emotionally battered and bruised; I wondered how in the world I was going to survive. Exhausted, I spent the rest of the night sitting alone in the still darkness of our living room, my sister's hurtful words and vicious accusations playing over and over again in my mind.
Over the course of the next several days, the barrage of false accusations and disturbing behaviors continued. The sister and brother-in-law I loved and thought I intimately knew, became like people I didn't recognize. It felt as if we were dealing with Jekyll and Hyde personalities.
For several months, my husband and I tried to make the best of the very difficult situation. My sister and brother-in-law made specific promises which brought us a glimmer of hope. We hung on, hoping they would keep their promises so both our business and personal relationships could be restored. Winter and spring passed. And then it became clear—their promises were just a ruse; a means to an end, a way to buy time.
Hidden truths slowly began to be revealed and ulterior motives came to light. I can't begin to describe how shocking it was when we found out what my sister and brother-in-law were capable of doing. My husband and I had to come face to face with the ugly truth: who my sister and brother-in-law portrayed themselves to be (and the people we thought them to be), was night and day different than the reality of who they really were. We were going to need to do whatever was necessary to separate ourselves from any kind of partnership with them.
Our new harsh reality was this: using trickery and deceit, my sister and brother-in-law implemented a sinister plan. Without us realizing what they were doing, they changed our original agreements. Their plan? Keep their secret plan hidden, take control, and then in three years (when they expected us to have our joint project completed at our expense), they would take over the entire project, force a large pay-out, and leave us with nothing. When we realized we needed to leave the partnership it ruined their sinister plans. They tried everything in their power to "save" their plan and force us to remain in the partnership until their plan could come to fruition. Manipulation. Control. Threats.
When we refused to cave in to any of their underhanded methods—IT happened. What started out as an ordinary hot summer day in July quickly became anything but ordinary. Our lawyer came to our home so he could personally deliver the difficult and life-changing shocking news—my sister and brother-in-law had just filed a vicious, vindictive and ruinous lawsuit against my husband and myself, and my husband's long-established business in the Federal Court system. Plan A wasn't successful so they resorted to Plan B—file a lawsuit. In a court of law they publicly accused us of lying, stealing, cheating and misappropriating funds. They wanted the courts to enforce the "agreement" they deceitfully obtained. If they could get a judge or jury to believe their claims, Plan B would mean our total financial ruin.
The storm clouds, which had been swirling since January, now became a full-blown violent and destructive summer storm. We thought the lawsuit would last for a year or so at the most. One year passed—and the lawsuit continued on. We tried everything in our power to find a peaceful resolution to the conflict but all of our efforts were immediately and categorically rejected. Any of our many offers to sell our share, buy out their interest, or sell to a third party—flatly rejected. Arbitration—refused. Court ordered Mediation—failed. Court ordered Settlement—failed. Two years ... three years ... four years ... five years ... six years ... seven years ... eight years ... nine years ... ten years ... eleven years ... twelve years ... and the lawsuit continued.
THEN! After twelve and a half years—the lawsuit ended, "the storm" passed over, and the promises God miraculously gave through the most unlikeliest of sources—proved true. The LORD, by HIS great power, freed us. Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow!
Walking On His Footpath (Following the Master's Lead) took many twists and turns, but along the way we learned a valuable lesson—there is joy in the journey! Even when the journey is long and difficult, there is joy when you are following HIS path.
To follow along on our journey begin here: The Beginning
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