Chapter 3 - THE EVICTION
According to the security footage and the property manager’s report, Mark’s Monday morning began with a locked door.
He walked up to the glass entrance of his consulting firm, a coffee in one hand and his briefcase in the other, and found a heavy chain and padlock looped through the handles. Taped directly to the glass at eye level was a bright orange legal notice.
Mark tried to pry the doors open, spilling his coffee in the process, before finally reading the paper.
NOTICE OF LEASE TERMINATION AND COMMERCIAL EVICTION. Property Owner: Horizon Holdings LLC.
Mark immediately pulled out his phone and dialed the property manager, a man named Mr. Vance, whom my lawyers employed.
"Vance! What the hell is going on with my doors?" Mark yelled.
"Good morning, Mr. Mercer," Vance replied calmly. "As the notice states, your month-to-month commercial lease has been terminated by the ownership group, effective immediately."
"You can't do that! I've been a tenant for six years! I have a ten-year lease!"
"Actually, sir, your original lease expired four years ago. You’ve been operating on a month-to-month grace period subsidized by the owner. The owner has decided to liquidate the asset. You have until 5:00 PM on Wednesday to remove your property under armed security supervision, or it will be seized to cover your outstanding back rent."
Mark was hyperventilating. "Who is the owner?! I demand to speak to the head of Horizon Holdings!"
"I'm afraid the owner is unavailable, Mr. Mercer. But I believe you will be hearing from her attorneys shortly."
Mark hung up, bewildered and furious. He immediately drove back to our suburban home, assuming he would use the home office to figure out the disaster at work, and planning to scream at me for still being "missing."
But when Mark pulled into our driveway, he found a black Lincoln Town Car parked out front.
Diane was standing on the front porch in her bathrobe, screaming at two men in suits.
Mark rushed up the driveway. "Mom, what's going on?"
"These thugs are trying to kick me out of my son's house!" Diane shrieked, pointing a trembling finger at the two process servers. "Tell them who you are, Mark! Tell them you own this property!"
One of the men turned to Mark, holding out a thick stack of manila folders.
"Mark Mercer?"
"Yes," Mark snapped. "Get off my property before I call the police."
"You are welcome to call them, sir, but we are executing lawful service," the man said smoothly, pressing the folders against Mark's chest until he reflexively took them. "You are being served with a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage, filed by Sarah Mercer. Additionally, you are being served with an immediate Notice to Vacate the premises."
Mark froze. The blood drained from his face. "Divorce? Notice to vacate? I pay the mortgage on this house!"
"If you read the deed attached to page four of the eviction notice, sir, you will see that the property is owned outright by the Sterling Family Trust. Your wife is the sole beneficiary. You have zero equity in this property. Because of the domestic assault charges being filed against your mother, a judge has granted a temporary restraining order. You and Diane Mercer have exactly four hours to pack your personal belongings and vacate the premises, or you will be arrested for trespassing."
Diane gasped, clutching her chest. "Assault charges?! I slapped a disrespectful brat!"
The process server didn't flinch. "You assaulted a minor, ma'am. The police have already been notified. I suggest you pack."
Mark tore open the divorce petition, his eyes scanning the pages frantically. He saw the asset disclosures. He saw the name of the trust. He saw the ownership documents for Horizon Holdings LLC.
He dropped his briefcase on the porch.
"Sarah..." Mark whispered, the horrifying realization finally crashing down on him. "Sarah owns the building. Sarah owns the house."
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Diane grabbed his arm. "Mark, what are you saying? Do something! Call your lawyer! Put that woman in her place!"
Mark looked at his mother, the illusion of his success shattering into a million irreparable pieces. "I don't have a lawyer, Mom. And I don't have a place to put her. She owns everything."
