CHAPTER 9: THE HOUSE
I drove home in a daze.
The letters from Melissa were on the passenger seat. The phone call with Mary was replaying in my head. The business was in debt. Robert was lying to me. Everything I thought I knew was wrong.
But as I pulled into the driveway, I saw something that made my blood run cold.
The front door was open.
I stepped out of the car slowly, my eyes fixed on the dark rectangle where the door used to be. The living room light was on, even though I hadn't left it on. Music was playing inside. Something old, something from Robert's record collection.
I walked up the steps and pushed the door open.
Daniel was sitting in Robert's recliner. Ashley was on the couch. Melissa was standing by the window, a glass of wine in her hand.
"Welcome home," Daniel said.
"What are you doing here?"
"We live here," Ashley said. "You just didn't know it."
I looked around the room. The furniture was different. Newer. More expensive. The family photos were gone, replaced by modern art.
"What did you do?"
"We made the house our own," Melissa said. "Robert left it to us. In the letters you found."
"Those letters are forged."
"They're not forged. They're authentic. Robert signed them."
"He was dying. He wasn't in his right mind."
"He was completely in his right mind. He was just trying to protect us. Protect what's left of this family."
I looked at my children. They were sitting there like strangers, like I'd never known them at all.
"You can't do this," I said.
"We already did," Daniel said. "We have the deed. The real deed. The one that supersedes the trust."
I pulled out my phone to call Mary. Ashley grabbed it out of my hand and threw it across the room.
"Don't," she said. "We're not trying to hurt you. We're trying to help you. You've been living in a fantasy, Mom. This is reality. It's time to face it."
I backed toward the door. Melissa set down her wine glass and walked toward me.
"Don't run," she said. "There's nowhere to go. Everything you had is gone. The house. The money. The business. We have it all."
"Robert wouldn't—"
"Robert was weak. He couldn't tell you the truth. So we did it for him."
I looked at Daniel. He was sitting in his father's chair, looking like he'd been waiting his whole life for this moment.
"This is what you wanted," I said. "All along."
"Yes," Daniel said. "It's what we deserved."
May you like
I turned and walked out of the house.
I didn't look back.
