“If you want dinner, lick it off the floor!” My son-in-law mocked me after knocking my plate down, while making a toast at dinner. I stood up, adjusted my coat, and said three words that left him completely terrified!

into my home office. Family meant I should ignore the young assistant who left his company crying. Family meant I should smile politely while he bragged about “investors” whose names never appeared anywhere publicly.

Family meant surrender.

But before I became a widow wrapped in black coats, I spent thirty-two years working as a forensic accountant. continue reading …