Yvaine opened the folder to a lease from eight years earlier. She pointed to the tenant’s name and then to the property address. “This building belongs to your company,” she said. Rhett’s smile disappeared. She explained that she’d represented the tenant after his company charged fees that weren’t allowed under the lease. The case had been settled quietly, and she’d never told the family because she didn’t want the argument.
Then she turned to another page. There were six more cases involving Rhett’s company, all with the same pattern—fees added after move-in, deposits withheld without proper documentation, and tenants pressured into accepting less than they were owed. Every case had been resolved against the company. Rhett’s partner picked up the folder and started reading. He asked why none of these disputes had appeared in the company’s leadership reports. Rhett didn’t answer.
Yvaine closed the folder and looked at the award in his hand. “You’ve spent fifteen years telling everyone I don’t understand property management,” she said. “I’ve spent fifteen years reading the leases your company actually gives people.” Nobody at the table spoke. Then Rhett’s partner asked Yvaine if she still had copies of the original settlements. She nodded. She had brought the folder because she thought it was finally time everyone understood exactly what her “hobby” had been doing to his business.
