That helped.

The financial pressure eased as my schedule stabilized.

Frank’s proposed five-thousand-dollar transfer remained unaccepted.

The lake-lot questions continued separately through legal and financial channels.

We didn’t need to rely on his money to make the family-safety arrangement work.

That was important to Isabelle.

For years, financial help had been one way Frank kept her close.

Now she could decide whether to accept assistance without fearing that refusing would mean betraying him.