My Family Gutted My Lake House While I Was Away — Then I Discovered Someone Had Forged My Signature. The Handwriting Expert Revealed the Forger Was Left-Handed. So Was My Mother

A few weeks later, I received a visit from Alex, the private investigator I had hired to dig into my family's financial history. He had been working quietly in the background, following leads and tracking down documents.

He showed up at my door on a Sunday afternoon, a thick folder under his arm.

"Bella, I found something you need to see," he said.

I invited him inside and poured him a cup of coffee.

"What is it?"

He opened the folder and spread documents across my kitchen counter. "Your mother opened a secret bank account twelve years ago. She's been transferring money into it regularly—small amounts at first, but larger over time."

"How much?"

"Almost three hundred thousand dollars."

I stared at him. "Three hundred thousand?"

"She was planning something. A backup plan. A way to disappear if everything fell apart."

"Did she use it?"

"Not yet. But she might try to access it when she gets out of prison. I've already put a freeze on the account."

"Thank you."

"There's more." He pulled out another document. "The account is connected to a law firm. And the law firm is connected to your brother."

"Jacob?"

"Your mother was planning to give him the money. After she got out. She was planning to help him disappear."

I sat down heavily. "So Jacob knew about the account?"

"He probably knew. But the account was in your mother's name. He couldn't access it without her."

"So she was going to give it to him."

"Exactly. She was planning to help him run."

I shook my head. "She was in prison. How was she going to manage that?"

"She had connections. People on the outside. I'm still investigating."

I looked at the documents spread across my counter. My mother had been planning to help Jacob escape. She had been willing to risk everything for him. And she had been willing to leave me behind.

Just like she always had.

"Thank you, Alex," I said. "This is important."

"I'm glad I could help. Let me know if you need anything else."

He left, and I sat in my kitchen, staring at the evidence of my mother's betrayal. Even in prison, she was still trying to protect Jacob. Even in prison, she was still planning to give him everything while I got nothing.

But I didn't need anything from her.