The mediation took place in a conference room at Marisol's office.
Daniel sat opposite me with his attorney, a man named Keith who wore a charcoal suit and kept his hands folded. Marisol sat beside me. We had been instructed to treat the session as a working meeting, not a courtroom. No one would win by raising their voice.
I had already agreed to separate our personal accounts and divide the savings. The house would be sold, because neither of us could carry the mortgage alone. The question was Aster House.
Daniel's first proposal was still on the table. He would buy my share, take over the loan, and pay me a fixed amount based on the current appraisal.
My counteroffer was that I would buy his share if the bank approved financing. If not, we would sell the lower field to the Trust and
