I refused to rescue Cody from the massive financial disaster he had knowingly created for himself. I instructed him to provide Deputy Schmitt with a complete list of everyone he had defrauded, contact every single person to confess his lies, and establish a realistic repayment schedule. Over the next few weeks, the painful reality of Cody’s actions became entirely clear as we reviewed his payment records. He had taken money from honest people who just wanted a quiet weekend outdoors, including a man recovering from cancer and a grandfather treating his young teenage grandson. Deputy Schmitt contacted the affected hunters to properly explain the situation, and naturally, most of them were incredibly furious. Some threatened immediate legal action, while others demanded full reimbursement for their travel expenses and motel reservations. I offered my complete cooperation to the local authorities and provided written statements confirming Cody had zero authority to sell access to my property. Discovering that Cody had also sent messages to these hunters claiming he used their money to maintain the land only deepened my profound disappointment in his ongoing dishonesty.
I confronted Cody once again regarding the text messages where he falsely claimed to be maintaining the eighty acres with the hunting fees. He admitted that his deceit spiraled completely out of control simply because he was afraid I would have denied him permission if he had asked honestly. I warned him that repairing his ruined finances would be entirely up to him, and he desperately needed to learn how to accept refusal without resorting to theft. I spent the following weeks reflecting on my grief and realizing that for the past twenty months, I had been constantly avoiding conflict just to keep the peace in my extended family. Taking a firm stand against my nephew finally made me feel like I was actively protecting my late husband’s legacy rather than just quietly surviving my widowhood. Exactly three weeks after that tense morning in the freezing deer stand, Cody arrived at my front door carrying a thick manila envelope. He silently left it on my kitchen table, and when I finally opened it, I found a detailed handwritten repayment plan outlining exactly how he intended to return every single stolen dollar.