Signed Away: A Life Unbound

ared at the stack of papers on my desk, a thick testament to five years of my life.

zed. It was

re about this? The

me way it had been for years

ice sounding hollow and distant. "T

. He doesn't know

dge of the thick paper. "But I'm sick too. Sick of this

rn was a kindness I couldn't afford right now. Kindn

wedding day. He was handsome, brilliant, his eyes full of love for me. That Liam

g of the phone by my bed. I couldn't move. My limbs were heavy, my head thick with a f

who also had Alzheimer's, had suffered a fall. She had been asking for me. By the time I woke

e crushing weight of my life, were gone. In their place was a bottle of potent

," he'd said, shrugging. "You were being such

e it, and my mother-in-law, the kind woman who still sometimes reme

o stone. The love I had clung to, the hope I

an our tech company, the one we built together, while he slowly disappeared. His memory didn't just fade; it

enty-one again, and he

ls so he could shower Sophia with gifts. The woman who ran th

ths meticulously preparing for this. Every share, every asset, every dollar in the compa

ch, texting, a wide, boyish grin on hi

ia

fading into mild irrit

, placing the stack of documents o

ven glancing at the papers. His thumbs were already movi

page. "It's an asset transfer. I've consolidated all the company holdi

ould look at company papers with such fire in his eyes, his hand covering mine as we planned our f

left his phone. A flicker of

e savings accounts. It's all in your name now." I poin

eration. He picked up the pen. The weight of the money, the

icky, you have to hit the side twice to get it to work. The plumber's number is on the fridge. Your m

ther. He wouldn't remember her, but Helen had been with

p talking about my mom like she's... sick or something. It's weird." He hated any

lightly. Hidden at the very bottom, the last page he would sign, was the div

my voice barely a whisper. "Th