“Yes.” I didn’t bother explaining that I’d barely been able to get out of bed up until a week or two ago, much less deal with the bank.
“Hold on,” he said before I could ask about the mortgage. “I’m transferring you.”
The bank apparently had a whole section devoted to “survivors.” The representative assigned to me was named Martha. She had a warm, comforting voice edged with a hint of a southern Virginia lilt. Her serious tone, her consideration, her “I’m so sorry for your loss” made my throat swell. I sipped from the straw of my water bottle to keep my emotions in check.
Ali and I kept separate primary bank accounts. Our work checks were deposited into our respective savings and checking accounts. That’s how Ali set it up, and I never asked why, since both of our names were on everything. Martha, the rep, confirmed what I already knew.
“Your name is on all of the accounts, so you have complete access to your husband’s funds,” the rep told me. “We’ll need to close his savings account and move the funds into yours. Would you like me to also close his checking and move the balance to you?”
I wanted to hit “End Call” and hurl my phone against the white speckled countertop that Ali and I picked out together two years before. Ali had balked at the price, but the old laminate that came with the house had cracked and peeled so badly that I insisted on replacing it.
I released a long sigh. If only I could go back to those days when I did normal things that didn’t include taking Ali’s name off accounts. Soon there’d be no trace that he ever existed.
“Can I keep his checking account open?” I couldn’t bear to close it.
“Sure, honey. I’ll just put it in your name.”
Hearing Martha clicking away on her computer made me relax a little. She was nice and understanding, her voice soothing. She didn’t seem like the type of person who’d judge me for being financially clueless. “Will any automatic payments that my husband set up continue to be paid through that account?”
“Yes, everything that’s set up should continue.”
“The thing is that I got a notice that my mortgage is overdue.”
“You did?” I heard the frown in Martha’s voice. “Let me check.”
“Thank you.” Lulu was right. This wasn’t so bad. I really shouldn’t have put off dealing with the finances. I could do this.
More clicking sounds through the phone. “Here it is,” Martha said. “The mortgage has been paid automatically on the fifth of each month for the last six months.”
“So itisup to date?” I was confused. “Then why did I get a late notice?”
“I’m not sure. I’ll tell you what,” Martha said. “I see here that the payment goes to our mortgage department. This bank holds your loan.”
“Yes, that’s right,” I said, trying to prove to Martha that I wasn’t completely oblivious. “I cosigned the mortgage papers when we purchased the house sixteen years ago.”
“Then this should be very easy to clear up,” Martha said. “I can transfer you to our mortgage department. They’ll have all of the answers that you need.”
Unfortunately, Jim, the mortgage guy, wasn’t nearly as comforting as Martha.
“Could you tell me about this notice?” I asked after being transferred to him. “It says my mortgage is overdue, but the rep I just talked to said it should be up to date.”
“What property is that?”
“My house is located on Merry Pines Circle.”
“Hmm.” His polite tone carried an undercurrent of impatience. “Yes, the mortgage on Merry Pines is up to date.”
Relief whooshed through me. “So itisa mistake.”
“But,” he continued, “the mortgage for the house on Cozy Glenn Lane is in arrears.”
“The what?” What the hell was he talking about? Impatience rippled through me. The last thing I needed was for some bank screwup to needlessly freak me out. “There’s obviously been some sort of mistake. My house is on Merry Pines Circle.”
“Just a moment,” he said. “Let me look into this.” More sounds of fingers tapping a computer keyboard.
“I was right.” He sounded very pleased with himself. “There are two mortgages for the separate properties.”
“Excuse me?” I spluttered. I obviously hadn’t heard him right. “Are you saying we’re paying a mortgage on asecondhouse?”
