Julian\u2019s mother asked to see me two days after Arthur told me her name appeared on the vendor account.<\/p>\n
Not through Julian.<\/p>\n
Not through his attorney.<\/p>\n
Through Patricia.<\/p>\n
That alone was strange enough that Patricia insisted on being present.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you want to meet her?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n
I stood beside my office window, looking down at the parking lot.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is a valid answer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does she want?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHer lawyer says she wants to clarify her involvement.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat sounds like lawyer language for minimizing damage.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt often is.\u201d<\/p>\n
I thought about Margaret Vance.<\/p>\n
For eighteen years, she had treated me with polished civility.<\/p>\n
Birthday cards.<\/p>\n
Christmas gifts.<\/p>\n
Occasional lunches where she asked about the children, praised the flowers in my dining room, and somehow managed to make every compliment sound like an observation about standards.<\/p>\n
She never insulted me openly.<\/p>\n
She did not need to.<\/p>\n
Margaret believed composure was superior to affection.<\/p>\n
Julian inherited that from her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTomorrow afternoon.\u201d<\/p>\n
I agreed.<\/p>\n
The meeting took place in Patricia\u2019s office.<\/p>\n
Margaret arrived exactly on time.<\/p>\n
She looked almost unchanged.<\/p>\n
Silver-blonde hair cut precisely at her jaw.<\/p>\n
Camel coat.<\/p>\n
Pearl earrings.<\/p>\n
A leather handbag resting neatly across her knees.<\/p>\n
Only her hands revealed anything.<\/p>\n
They were clasped too tightly.<\/p>\n
Her lawyer sat beside her.<\/p>\n
Patricia sat beside me.<\/p>\n
For several seconds, Margaret simply looked at me.<\/p>\n
Then she said, \u201cYou look well.\u201d<\/p>\n
I nearly laughed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s why you asked to meet?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
She glanced toward her attorney.<\/p>\n
He gave a small nod.<\/p>\n
Margaret straightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to explain the company.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhich one?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her mouth tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe vendor entity.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cInteresting that you call it that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat would you call it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA company that received money from Vance Global while apparently doing work nobody can verify.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her attorney interrupted.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy client is not admitting that characterization.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia replied before I could.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen your client should explain her role.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret looked at me again.<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian asked me to sign documents.\u201d<\/p>\n
There it was.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat documents?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCorporate documents.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you read them?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSome.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSome?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI trusted my son.\u201d<\/p>\n
The sentence almost made me angry enough to stand.<\/p>\n
Instead I stayed still.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo did I.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret\u2019s eyes shifted.<\/p>\n
For the first time, she seemed uncomfortable.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe told me the company needed a separate entity for consulting arrangements.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you consult?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you provide services?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you approve invoices?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot personally.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you receive money?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her lawyer said, \u201cMargaret\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n
She raised one hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot what you think.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know what to think.\u201d<\/p>\n
She hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian transferred money to me over several years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFamily support.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Patricia.<\/p>\n
She gave me nothing.<\/p>\n
This was mine to hear.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid that include the Florida condominium?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret\u2019s expression changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPurchased with money that passed through my trust?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t know that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you ask where it came from?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy not?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian was successful.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at her.<\/p>\n
That answer explained far too much.<\/p>\n
Successful people were apparently allowed to become their own evidence.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much money did he give you?\u201d<\/p>\n
She named an amount.<\/p>\n
It was less than the vendor company had received.<\/p>\n
A lot less.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere did the rest go?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her lawyer leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy client\u2019s involvement was largely nominal.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNominal people don\u2019t usually sign bank authorizations.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret\u2019s face hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cI signed what my son asked me to sign.\u201d<\/p>\n
The resemblance to Julian became almost unbearable.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd because he asked, you never questioned it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was my son.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was his wife.\u201d<\/p>\n
She flinched.<\/p>\n
Barely.<\/p>\n
But I saw it.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think I don\u2019t understand that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI have no idea what you understand.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret looked down at her hands.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen Julian told me he was leaving you, I told him not to be foolish.\u201d<\/p>\n
That was not what I expected.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew about Chloe?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLater.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much later?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore he asked you for the divorce.\u201d<\/p>\n
My throat tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long before?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSeveral weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo you knew he was planning to leave.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you know he was moving money?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her silence answered before her mouth did.<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew he was reorganizing things.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat specifically did he tell you?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret\u2019s attorney immediately said, \u201cWe are not waiving privilege regarding communications involving counsel.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia replied, \u201cI did not ask about counsel.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret stared at the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said he needed to protect the company from the divorce.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt something cold move through me.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said the separation might become hostile.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was planning the hostility before he told me the marriage was ending.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cI did not know how he intended to handle it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you know he planned to remove me from the house?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you know he was telling me the house belonged to you?\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked up sharply.<\/p>\n
There.<\/p>\n
Something important.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
I leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe told me the house was yours. He said I had no claim because you owned it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret\u2019s lips parted.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her attorney shifted.<\/p>\n
Margaret ignored him.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is not what I understood.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you understand?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe family entity held title.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd who controlled the entity?\u201d<\/p>\n
She did not answer.<\/p>\n
\u201cMargaret.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian had authority.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo when he told me it belonged to you, he used your name.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her face had gone pale.<\/p>\n
\u201cI did not authorize that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou signed the structure.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI did not authorize him to use me to frighten you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Something in her voice sounded real.<\/p>\n
It did not absolve her.<\/p>\n
But it was real.<\/p>\n
I sat back.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you think would happen to me and the children?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought there would be a settlement.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe gave us three days of nowhere permanent to sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her eyes closed briefly.<\/p>\n
\u201cI learned that later.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid it bother you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you tell him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said you needed to understand reality.\u201d<\/p>\n
I almost laughed.<\/p>\n
Of course.<\/p>\n
That word.<\/p>\n
Reality.<\/p>\n
Julian\u2019s favorite disguise for power.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat reality?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat the life you had depended on him.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room became very still.<\/p>\n
My hands folded in my lap.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd what did you say?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret\u2019s voice dropped.<\/p>\n
\u201cI told him he was behaving like his father.\u201d<\/p>\n
That stopped me.<\/p>\n
Julian almost never spoke about his father beyond saying the marriage had been difficult.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret hesitated.<\/p>\n
Her lawyer whispered something.<\/p>\n
She shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. She should know.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian\u2019s father controlled all our money.\u201d<\/p>\n
My anger shifted.<\/p>\n
Not disappeared.<\/p>\n
Shifted.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe gave me an allowance. Every purchase was questioned. When I threatened to leave, he moved accounts before I could access them.\u201d<\/p>\n
The parallel was so clear that I felt sick.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Julian know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow old was he?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOld enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd he hated his father.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor years.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo he became him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret\u2019s eyes filled.<\/p>\n
It was the first time I had ever seen her close to tears.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think he believed he became stronger.\u201d<\/p>\n
No one spoke.<\/p>\n
Then I asked the question that had been waiting beneath everything.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy are you telling me this now?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret looked toward her lawyer.<\/p>\n
Then back at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Julian asked me to lie.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia\u2019s posture changed instantly.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wanted me to state that I independently owned the house and that he had no meaningful control over the entity.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIs that false?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
My heartbeat quickened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat else?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wanted me to say the vendor company provided legitimate consulting services.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot through me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you know anyone who worked there?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you ever see contracts?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he say the company actually did?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cStrategic advisory.\u201d<\/p>\n
I almost smiled bitterly.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he explain what that meant?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her attorney finally spoke.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy client has declined to make the requested statements.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia asked, \u201cDid she preserve the communications?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTexts? Emails?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
My pulse quickened.<\/p>\n
Julian had asked his mother to support a story about the house and the vendor company after the investigation began.<\/p>\n
That mattered.<\/p>\n
Margaret reached into her handbag.<\/p>\n
Her attorney placed a hand over it.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe agreed counsel would transmit documents.\u201d<\/p>\n
She stopped.<\/p>\n
Then she nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s another thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
I waited.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen Julian first asked me to sign documents for the family entity, years ago, he said it would protect assets from business risk.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long ago?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout twelve years.\u201d<\/p>\n
Before the affair.<\/p>\n
Before the divorce planning.<\/p>\n
Before Chloe.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo the structures weren\u2019t created for the divorce.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot originally.\u201d<\/p>\n
That distinction mattered.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen when did he start using them to move marital assets?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret swallowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
I believed that she might truly not know.<\/p>\n
Not because she was innocent.<\/p>\n
Because she had done what so many people around Julian had done.<\/p>\n
Signed.<\/p>\n
Trusted.<\/p>\n
Assumed.<\/p>\n
Let competence stand in for transparency.<\/p>\n
Patricia asked, \u201cMrs. Vance, did Julian ever discuss Evelyn\u2019s original contribution to Vance Global with you?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
My breath caught.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYears ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPerhaps fifteen.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said you had financed his early stake.\u201d<\/p>\n
The words landed so hard that I nearly missed what came next.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe called it financing?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot a gift?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia\u2019s pen moved immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat exactly did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret concentrated.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was frustrated because you wanted to renovate the kitchen.\u201d<\/p>\n
I almost laughed from disbelief.<\/p>\n
I remembered that argument.<\/p>\n
Julian said the renovation was wasteful.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe told me you did not understand liquidity because you had already tied up a substantial amount financing his founder position.\u201d<\/p>\n
My throat went dry.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo he acknowledged it privately.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he say he had repaid me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he say I gave it to him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he say I owned shares?\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
A complicated mixture of vindication and grief moved through me.<\/p>\n
He had known.<\/p>\n
He had always known what the money was.<\/p>\n
He simply changed the description depending on who was listening.<\/p>\n
At home that evening, I told no one.<\/p>\n
Not Arthur.<\/p>\n
Not Rachel.<\/p>\n
I made dinner.<\/p>\n
Helped Leo with spelling.<\/p>\n
Washed Nora\u2019s hair while she complained that shampoo smelled \u201ctoo clean.\u201d<\/p>\n
After the children slept, I sat on the sofa and let the day catch up with me.<\/p>\n
My phone rang.<\/p>\n
Arthur.<\/p>\n
I answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow did it go?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou heard?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCorporate counsel told me Margaret met with you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe says Julian asked her to lie.\u201d<\/p>\n
Arthur was silent.<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe house. The vendor company.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid she agree?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
A long exhale.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe also remembers Julian calling my townhouse money financing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat helps you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t sound relieved.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m tired of being helped by discovering another person knew part of the truth while I didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
Arthur said nothing.<\/p>\n
That was the right response.<\/p>\n
I continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe told me about Julian\u2019s father.\u201d<\/p>\n
Arthur\u2019s voice softened.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know some of that history.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you know his father controlled Margaret financially?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Julian ever talk about it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we were younger.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said he\u2019d never become him.\u201d<\/p>\n
I closed my eyes.<\/p>\n
The tragedy of it was almost too neat.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe thinks control is safety.\u201d<\/p>\n
Arthur was quiet.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn\u2019t excuse anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t want anyone excusing him because his father was terrible.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey shouldn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
I appreciated that.<\/p>\n
Context without absolution.<\/p>\n
Understanding without surrender.<\/p>\n
The following morning, Patricia received Margaret\u2019s documents.<\/p>\n
Among them was a text from Julian sent six days earlier.<\/p>\n
Need you to stay consistent: house is yours, always was. Consulting entity operated independently. Don\u2019t overcomplicate this.<\/p>\n
I stared at the message on Patricia\u2019s screen.<\/p>\n
\u201cStay consistent.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMeaning he thinks they already have a story.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is a reasonable reading.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another text followed.<\/p>\n
If Evelyn gets traction on founder equity, everything becomes vulnerable.<\/p>\n
My pulse quickened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does everything mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then a third message.<\/p>\n
She\u2019ll take the house and stop. She always wanted security, not a fight.<\/p>\n
I read it twice.<\/p>\n
Julian had still been building decisions around an older version of me.<\/p>\n
The woman who wanted peace enough to accept ignorance.<\/p>\n
The woman who mistook stability for safety.<\/p>\n
The woman who would take the house because houses felt solid.<\/p>\n
Patricia watched me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you thinking?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat he still doesn\u2019t understand why I said no.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe thinks he does.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe always does.\u201d<\/p>\n
A call came through on Patricia\u2019s desk phone.<\/p>\n
She answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow certain?\u201d<\/p>\n
She listened.<\/p>\n
\u201cSend it now.\u201d<\/p>\n
She ended the call.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe forensic accountants finished tracing the remaining vendor transfers.\u201d<\/p>\n
My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo Julian?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSome.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo Margaret?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSome.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo Chloe?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSome.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd the rest?\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia looked directly at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe largest unresolved block went into a private investment account opened in Leo and Nora\u2019s names.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot through your trust.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen who controls it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is the problem.\u201d<\/p>\n
She turned her monitor toward me.<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian does.\u201d<\/p>\n
My voice dropped.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe opened accounts in our children\u2019s names?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith company money?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFunds traceable to vendors, house refinancing, and other sources.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat was he doing?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t know yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at the account values.<\/p>\n
The children\u2019s names sat at the top.<\/p>\n
Leo Vance.<\/p>\n
Nora Vance.<\/p>\n
Beneath them, millions of dollars had moved in and out while they were learning multiplication and losing baby teeth.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat has he taken out?\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia\u2019s face hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room became very quiet.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd where did it go?\u201d<\/p>\n
She paused.<\/p>\n
\u201cBack to him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Julian\u2019s mother asked to see me two days after Arthur told me her name appeared on the vendor account. Not through Julian. Not through his attorney. Through Patricia. That alone … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5164,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5177","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chapter-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5177","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5177"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5177\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5195,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5177\/revisions\/5195"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5164"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5177"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5177"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5177"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}