Penny discovers her husband’s betrayal and her mother-in-law’s involvement in a fraudulent transfer of the car.
After a dramatic trial, she takes charge of her life, reclaiming what belongs to her. A powerful story of justice, resilience, and redemption.
Penny stood by the window, staring at the black BMW parked in the yard. That car hadn’t been easy to get: they had to take out a loan, which she and Adam were still paying off. Or rather, only Penny was paying for it: her husband hadn’t worked in the last three years.
“Looking out the window again?” said Adam, lying on the couch, checking his phone. “Admiring our beauty?”
“Our beauty?” Penny replied. “I’m the one paying off the loan.”
“But I’m the one driving it,” Adam smiled. “Or do you think you could handle a car like that? Your driver’s license must be covered in cobwebs.”
Penny remained silent. After five years of marriage, she’d grown accustomed to her husband’s cutting remarks. At first, she thought it was just his difficult temper or his work problems. But now it was clear: Adam was just using her.
“By the way,” Adam said indifferently, “I’m meeting the boys to go fishing.”
“This weekend?”
“Yes, about three days.”
“So where will you get the money?”
“You wouldn’t say no to your loving husband, would you?” She put on a charming smile.
Penny rubbed her temples tiredly. Every month it was the same: trips, get-togethers with friends, a new cell phone… and somehow, she always ended up paying.
“No, Adam. I’m not going to give you any more money.”
“What do you mean, you’re not going to give me any?” She sat up abruptly. “You have an obligation to support me!”
“Obligation? Since when?”
“You’re my wife!” And a wife should support her husband.
“I’ve supported you for five years. Enough.”
Adam abruptly stood up from the couch.
“How dare you? I’m chipping in too! We bought the car…”
“With my money!”
“But it’s in my name,” he said with a mocking smile. “Actually… in my mother’s name.”
Penny froze.
“What do you mean by that?”
“Literally. I transferred it to her name a month ago, so you couldn’t claim it in the divorce.”
“What did you do?”
“You thought I was that stupid?” Adam said triumphantly. “I could see you were thinking about a divorce. So I made sure.”
Penny sat down slowly in a chair. The car was worth four million. They’d taken out a three-year loan, and they’d already paid off half. And all this time…”
“How could you?”
“Very easy,” Adam headed for the door. “Mom gave her consent, and I took care of everything. Now the car is ours, with her, not yours.”
“And Nina Petrovna knew?”
“Of course!” Her mother-in-law appeared in the doorway. “What did you think? That we were going to let you profit from the divorce?”
Penny looked at her husband and then at her mother-in-law, who seemed to be enjoying herself.
“Artyom, you did the right thing,” her mother said. “A car is more essential for a man. Otherwise, he would have left you and driven off into the sunset.”
“Do you think you’re the smartest?” Penny asked quietly.
“Of course!” Adam said with a mocking bow. “Learn while you can.”
“So the car is yours now?”
“Exactly,” Nina Petrovna replied proudly. “And don’t even think about doing anything. It’s all legal.”
Penny wordlessly pulled out her phone.
“Who are you calling?” Adam asked uneasily.
“My lawyer.”
“Useless!” Nina Petrovna laughed. “The document is perfect. Call all the lawyers in town if you want.”
“Good afternoon, Mikhail Sergeyevich. Remember I told you about my husband’s schemes? Well, he transferred the car to his mother…”
Adam’s smile disappeared.
“What schemes? What are you talking about?”
“Listen carefully.” Penny put her phone away. “I’ve suspected this for a long time. That’s why I spent six months collecting evidence…”
She opened the cabinet and took out a thick folder of documents: the sales contract, the payment schedule, the bank statements.
“Look,” she placed the papers on the table. “Here are all the monthly payments: made from my account. The loan is in my name.” And you haven’t paid a cent.
“So what?” Nina snorted. “The car is mine now. According to the papers, everything is in order.”
“Oh, really?” She pulled out another sheet of paper. “Here’s the divorce petition, dated the fifteenth. And the deed of transfer was signed on the seventeenth.”
Adam paled.
“How did you know the date?”
“I did some research,” Penny said. “Here’s also a statement from the dealer, confirming that I chose and paid for the car. My income tax return. And here, proof that you, Adam, haven’t worked in three years.”
“Not even ten!” Nina interrupted. “But the deed is legal!”
“It’s a fraud,” Penny replied calmly. “It was done to avoid dividing assets during the divorce.”
The next day, Penny visited her lawyer. Mikhail reviewed the documents carefully.
—It’s a sham transaction. The court will void it. Besides, that could have legal consequences.
“What kind of consequences?”
“Given the amount involved, serious penalties,” the lawyer replied. “And you can seek compensation for moral damages. I advise you to file the lawsuit immediately.”
That same day, Penny filed the lawsuit, without notifying Adam or his mother-in-law.
A week later, Adam received the summons. He stormed into the apartment.
“What are you doing? Do you think you’re clever?”
“I’m just restoring justice.”
“I have the right to the car!”
“A car you didn’t pay for?”
“It was community property!”
“Until you tried to cheat on the deed.”
“You’re not going to prove anything!”
“I already did. It’s all with the lawyer.”
Adam ran off. Less than an hour later, Nina arrived.
“What are you trying to do? Leave Adam without a car?”
“A car he didn’t win?”
“We’re not canceling anything! I have contacts!”
“Are you threatening me?” Penny turned on the voice recorder.
The mother-in-law froze.
“I… I was just warning you.”
“Perfect. Because I’m recording the threats too.”
That night, Adam called:
“Can we come to an agreement? I’ll give you back some of the money…”
“No. This time it’ll all be done through legal means.”
“You’re complicating things!” There was a sound of breaking glass. “Do you think you’ll get away with it?”
“What are you going to do? Sign another deed?”
“You’ll regret it!”
“Is that a threat?” Penny asked calmly.
The next day the trial began. Penny stood next to her lawyer. Adam kept nervously touching his tie. Nina sat in the front row, looking dignified.
“Please review these documents,” the lawyer said. “All the car payments came from my client’s account. The deed was signed two days after she filed for divorce: an obvious attempt to hide marital assets.”
The judge examined the papers carefully.
“Furthermore,” the lawyer added, “the defendant has accumulated fines totaling over one hundred thousand rubles. All captured by traffic cameras.”
Adam was startled.
“What fines?”
“For speeding, improper driving, and illegal parking,” the judge read. “Total: 127,000 rubles.”
“This is a mistake!” Nina shouted. “But the car is in my name!”
“Exactly,” the judge agreed. “So all the fines are now yours.”
After two hours, the court ruled: annul the deed, return the car to the marital estate, and force Nina to pay the fines.
“Can we come to an agreement?” Adam said in the hallway. “We can split the car.”
Penny took out the keys and handed them to him.
“Take it. It’s yours… if you pay the fines, the taxes, and the remaining loan.”
“What money? I don’t have any!”
“That’s not my problem. You wanted the car… so there you have it.”
Adam turned to his mother.
“You said everything would be okay!”
“I… just wanted to help you…”
“Help me? Now we’re in huge debt!”
A week later, they signed the divorce papers. Adam looked defeated.
“Penny… do you want to come back? I’ve realized a lot.”
“Oh yeah? What have you realized?”
“That I was wrong. That I should have worked…”
“Instead of cheating? Hiding assets?”
Adam lowered his head.
“I miss you…”
“Of course. Because you no longer have anyone to pay for your whims.”
“It’s not for money!”
“Then why? For love? That love that disappeared when I mentioned the divorce?”
“I got scared…”
“And you decided to betray me. With your mother.”
Silence. In the parking lot, the black BMW was now officially Penny’s. Nina had to sell her jewelry to pay the fines.
“You know?” Penny said as she opened the car door. “I even thank you.”
“Why?”
“For showing me who you really are. Now I know you can’t build a relationship with someone who betrays you out of self-interest.”
“Penny!”
“Don’t call me anymore. I’ve come too far to look back.”
She started the car. In the rearview mirror, she saw Adam and Nina’s confused faces. Now they understood: cunning doesn’t always win… especially if your opponent can think two steps ahead.
A month later, Adam texted: “What if we try this again?” Penny didn’t reply. She was busy choosing her summer vacation destination. And this time, she knew for sure: she would pay for this trip herself. Just for her.
