I've divided this chronicle of my life into four parts:
Although each post in the blog can stand alone, if you are not already familiar with my story, I would recommend reading two entries first: How They Met and Early Childhood. You can also utilize the index for a catalog of all posts that have been written as well as those in progress.
(When, after almost four years, my mother finally gained limited access to her entire lifetime of possessions, I added a fifth part: Fast Forward.)
When asked about my story, Bill insists that I'm the problem; I encourage you to read "How Toxic Families Choose a Child to Scapegoat." (external link) If you'd like to learn more about how this could happen, I recommend a recent article: 'Narcissistic abuse' has gone mainstream. But what is it? Skeptics say it's just a trendy hashtag. Survivors say it describes the unimaginably manipulative relationships they've escaped.
Where will you draw the line? Perhaps you truly didn't know. Or, maybe you had clues over the years - possibly even thinking the relationship between Bill & DeNese was toxic but it wasn't any of your business and choose to look the other way. Regardless, silence allowed this to perpetuate.
I don't doubt that it probably isn't easy to reconcile the charming friend you think you know with the atrocious abuse my mother and I endured. However, continuing to remain friends with Bill tells the world that you don't have a problem with this type of behavior.
This question unfairly assumes my mother is to blame. The real question should be: "Why is Bill Mountjoy abusive?"
Nevertheless, DeNese did try to escape - several times! These efforts are described in: Prison Break - Attempts 1 & 2, Prison Break - Attempt 3, and Prison Break - Attempt 4. Two upcoming posts (Emergency Protective Order, and Proposed Settlement Agreement) will also describe additional efforts to separate.
If you'd like to learn more about why it is so challenging to break free from domestic violence, check out "Why it takes women 7 attempts to leave an abusive relationship - and how you can help." (external link).
Nevertheless, one could also ask why didn't Bill just leave? If you have known the two of them in person, can you think of a time Bill had anything genuinely positive to say about DeNese? I can certainly think of positive things about Bill that DeNese used to say long ago. Yet, I could reflect back four decades and still struggle to come up with anything in the opposite direction... and it's not as if DeNese had any shortage of positive attributes. in my opinion, Bill Mountjoy stayed for financial gain.
(Please note that the answer below was written prior to a judgement in the partition case. DeNese officially moved from the Vienna home in September of 2023. Neither one of us have any interest in remaining at 402 Roland St SW at this point.)
Maybe but I think this question is completely irrelevant. Nevertheless, I will briefly entertain it because, if you know Bill personally, he's likely told you that we are "living in a mansion" and the Vienna home should be sold to purchase something more reasonable.
The Vienna house may be spacious but it's far from luxurious. The condition of the home is atrocious. Nevertheless, it's pretty much the only thing my mother has left that is familiar after not being able to return to her home in Lorton meant she lost an entire lifetime of possessions - including her pets and photographs. The idea that she should let go of the Vienna home as well could only be justified by an irrational barbarian. Besides - the numbers make it clear that Bill cashed out his interest years ago; insisting otherwise is theft - legal, perhaps, but that doesn't make it right.
I haven't wanted to live in the Vienna home since 2014. I tolerated the conditions because I have been my mother's sole source of emotional support; by being here, she would always have somewhere to run. I don't deny that it's easier to get the medical care I need in a major metropolitan area, such as Northern VA. Also, in the process we developed some incredible friendships with the community. However, the condition of the house also made us all sick. None of this really matters, though; the real question to ask is not why we lived in Vienna but why Bill feels entitled to take my mother's property.
No. While Bill is litigious and people can be sued for practically anything these days, I'm not troubled by the possibility of another lawsuit because what I have shared here is true.
These are the actual events in my life as candidly as my recollection permits. This website has been up for several years now, and I have not been sued. I take that as indication that Bill knows, just as much as I do, that I've held back considerably in describing the full extent of his actions. Also, so much of this was already public information due to litigation he decided to thrust upon us.
In 2022, Bill cancelled my health insurance. He did so with no warning whatsoever; I only found out in 2023 when I began receiving bills for prior medical care that had been declined for insurance payment. I assume it was payback for this website as Bill wasn't even paying for my insurance himself. It was part of his severance/settlement package with the AFL-CIO.
I am often unsettled with thoughts that Bill will physically hurt me. From my experience, Bill's core nature is extraordinarily retaliatory; I'd be hard pressed to come up with an example of a time Bill solved a serious problem without violence and/or intimidation. Fear of bodily harm has predated this site. I'm certain that, if he thought he would get away with it, Bill would kill me.
The site exists because my mother wants her story told. And, it exists because I am allowed to tell my story. Over 6,900 people visited this site in its first three and a half months. Even when I did not add any new material for almost two years, people kept visiting - every day. Thank you.
I am well-aware that Bill knows about the site, checks back routinely, and is "not happy" about its contents. That's certainly his right, but this wasn't written for Bill or his enablers. I absolutely do not care, at all, what Bill Mountjoy thinks of me. This was written for those who want to know our side as well as those who find themselves in a similar situation with a psychopath.
In August of 2024, Bill Mountjoy asked me how much money I wanted to take down this site. I told him I was not interested; this site isn't about blackmail or extortion. I happened to find the question unauthentic though; Bill Mountjoy notoriously clings to every dime to the point that his compulsions surrounding those fears are debilitating. He has no intention of paying me at all but it absolutely would not make a difference either way. I am sharing the truth - uncomfortable, of course, but no less accurate. I don't want a payout and I wouldn't accept money in exchange for joining the silence that enabled my mother's suffering.
Although I normally write quickly, these posts have been challenging to put to words - painful to reflect on and, occasionally, personally embarrassing to publish. Yet, there's a freedom that comes from having lost so much. There are recollections here that, for decades, I would not have whispered to a soul. I grew up being told by Nana (Dolores Mountjoy) not to "air our family's dirty laundry" - a form of gaslighting that increased suffering. Ignoring problems doesn't make them go away. Now, these words have been ready by everyone I know and thousands of people I have never even met. What has happened to us is atrocious and, if this has to be the way things end, at least people will know.... in a way, it's a small slice of justice for my mother.
In November of 2022, my computer broke and I have been unable to replace it for almost two years now. It’s tough to type at length when you rely on mobile devices and libraries rather than being able to sit down at your own full keyboard. Therefore, I stopped posting.
More recently, I started making videos on current events in the litigation with Bill Mountjoy, daily challenges of my disability, and my efforts to recover from narcissistic family abuse. As time and resources permit, I am linking those videos here. I'm @goodrollmodel on TikTok.
In August of 2024, my mother finally obtained limited access to her lifetime of possessions. Due to the sheer amount of content that fills in the blanks, I decided to slowly resume writing what I could from public computers.
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