The next morning, Michael walked out in his robe, acting like nothing had happened.<\/p>\n
He had no idea I was already gone.<\/p>\n
From Eleanor\u2019s car down the street, I watched in silence.<\/p>\n
At exactly 8:00 AM, black SUVs arrived.<\/p>\n
A man in a suit stepped out.<\/p>\n
\u201cMichael Harris? The property has been legally purchased by Eleanor Preston.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael froze. \u201cThis is my house!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo,\u201d the man replied. \u201cYou defaulted. The bank sold it this morning.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael stepped outside in shock as Eleanor arrived behind me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t do this!\u201d he shouted.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe already did,\u201d she said coldly.<\/p>\n
And then demolition began.<\/p>\n
Wall by wall, the house came down while Michael screamed and begged.<\/p>\n
By noon, it was rubble.<\/p>\n
By afternoon, the land was empty.<\/p>\n
Eleanor turned to me.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s build something better here.\u201d<\/p>\n
And we did.<\/p>\n
A women\u2019s shelter.<\/p>\n
The Eleanor Center.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"