Little Pink House_ A True Story of Defiance and Courage - Jeff Benedict [162]
“What they’re doing is wrong,” Susette said. “It was wrong when it started nine years ago. And it’s still wrong today. I don’t even know what to say anymore.”
Hannity looked to Bullock. “Susette’s not going to leave. Are they going to arrest her? Are they going to take her out in handcuffs? Are they going to throw her out of her house? Are they going to evict her? Maybe David Souter ought to come down there and take a look at her being evicted from her house.”
“Well, I certainly hope that doesn’t happen because it is completely unnecessary,” Bullock said. “That’s the amazing thing about this whole situation. This doesn’t have to happen.”
“Unbelievable,” Hannity said.
“Susette,” Colmes said, “we thank you for fighting the good fight. We’ll continue to follow this story. We thank you very much for being with us tonight.”
Suddenly the spotlight went dark and Susette’s earpiece went dead. The cameraman approached and removed the microphone from her sweater and shook her hand. “Good luck with what you’re doing,” he told her. “We support you.”
The crew packed their equipment into the truck and drove off, leaving Susette standing alone in the middle of her empty, dark street. None of the other holdouts were on hand. No supporters were standing by. For the first time in eight years, Susette felt completely and totally alone in the struggle against the city. And for the first time, she got a sense of what it would feel like if she prevailed and got to stay in the fort—awfully lonely.
Now she wanted to leave. The thought of staying behind in an abandoned neighborhood without her friends felt terribly depressing.
Yet she couldn’t pack it in now. She had an obligation to the nation. Letting go was not an option.
She looked up at her house. “There’s no way I can let these people knock my home down,” she said out loud.
She went inside and went to bed, wondering what the city would do in the morning.
Governor Rell didn’t need reminding that the national media had its eye on whether the city would close in on the remaining holdouts. She pressed her staff and they pressed Albright.
He lobbied for a little more time and a lot more money to work on Beyer and Von Winkle. Neither of them lived in the fort neighborhood, and both of them were businessmen with a considerable amount of money tied up in their buildings. If the state came up with more resources, these two would probably make the smart business decision and finally bow out.
Rell committed another $1.2 million to be made available for settlement funds and she agreed to extend the deadline to June 15. But the state needed a fallback position for Susette and the Cristofaro family. They lived in their homes and had made it abundantly clear no amount of money would get them to go. The governor didn’t want to see them forced out, but the state couldn’t force the city to return their property deeds. The governor and her staff formulated a contingency plan to deal with Susette and the Cristofaro family. Then Rell faxed a letter to Mayor Sabilia explaining the governor’s position. It read: “The State of Connecticut recommends that the City offer to relocate their primary residences (but not investment properties) to an appropriate location on Parcel 4-A, accompanied with a deed to the parcel upon which their homes will be relocated. Such deeds should include restrictive covenants to protect the development and cause title to the properties and all improvements to revert to the City upon transfer or death of the title holder.”
The ball was now in the city’s court.
47
THE ENDGAME
June 1, 2006
Did I wake you?” Bullock asked Susette.
“Are you kidding me? I’ve already had fourteen calls this morning.”
It was 7 a.m., and Susette’s appearance on the Fox News channel ten hours earlier had triggered a new round of offers from people around the country who wanted to help protect her home from the city. Some of the callers had scared Susette. A militia