PART5
“Mom, Dad understood our arrangement. He wanted to help us. He didn’t want you worrying about it.”
I looked at the email again.
“Did he also understand that you weren’t making the payments you promised?”
Colin’s voice became defensive.
“I’ve had expenses.”
“Everyone has expenses, Colin.”
“Look, I’ll pay it back when I can.”
“When you can?”
“Yes.”
I took a breath.
“Your father documented every payment. The outstanding amount is $71,400.”
He didn’t answer immediately.
Then he said something that made me grip the phone tighter.
“Why are you suddenly acting like a bank?”
I stared at the wall.
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.
“I am not acting like a bank. I’m asking about money you borrowed from your parents.”
“Mom, Dad never treated it like this.”
“Your father expected you to keep your promises.”
“Well, he’s not here anymore, is he?”
The words landed like a slap.
For several seconds, I couldn’t speak.
Colin seemed to realize what he’d said.
“Mom, I didn’t mean—”
But I had already heard him.
And somehow, those words hurt more than the empty Christmas dinner.
I slowly placed the documents back into their folder.
“Colin, I think we should talk another day.”
“Fine. Whatever.”
He ended the call.
I sat quietly.
Then I noticed something I hadn’t seen earlier.
The blue folder contained another envelope tucked into its back pocket.
It was smaller than the others.
My name was written on it again.
This time, Martin had added one sentence beneath it.
Open this only after you’ve spoken to Colin.
I froze.
I had just spoken to him.
My fingers carefully opened the envelope.
Inside was a single sheet of paper.
The first sentence made my heart pound.
Audrey, if Colin reacts angrily when you ask about the money, please don’t assume this is simply about the loan.
I continued reading.
I discovered something last year that I have not been able to explain to you. I believe someone has been encouraging Colin to make decisions that benefit them financially.
I stopped.
Someone?
Who?
I read the next lines.
I don’t know whether Colin fully understands what is happening. I don’t want you accusing him without evidence. But I found documents suggesting that your name was used without your permission.
My entire body went cold.
I read the sentence again.
My name?
Used without my permission?
I turned the page.
There was a photocopy of a document attached.
At the bottom was a signature.
It looked like mine.
But it wasn’t.
I knew that immediately.
The signature was supposed to be mine, but the final letter was shaped incorrectly.
Someone had copied my name.
And beneath it was a date from six months earlier.
I looked at the document heading.
AUTHORIZATION TO ACCESS FAMILY INVESTMENT ACCOUNT.
My hands began shaking so badly that the paper slipped onto the table.
Someone had attempted to access one of Martin’s investment accounts using my name.
I read the amount requested.
$120,000.
I covered my mouth.
Who would do such a thing?
And why?
Martin had attached one final note.
I stopped the transfer before the money could be released. The bank has a record of the request. I wanted to investigate further, but my health deteriorated before I could finish.
Please contact our attorney, Daniel Reeves. He knows what happened.
Do not sign anything concerning our finances until you have spoken with him.
I sat completely still.
For a long time, the only sound in the house was the ticking clock in the hallway.
Then my phone buzzed.
It was a message from Colin.
For a moment, I thought he might be apologizing for what he’d said.
But the message was different.
Mom, Kara and I need to talk to you about Dad’s estate. We heard there might be some money set aside, and we want to make sure everything is handled properly.
I stared at the screen.
How had they heard about the estate?
I hadn’t told anyone.
I hadn’t even told Colin about the $684,000 trust.
I typed a response.
What exactly do you want to discuss?
His reply came almost immediately.
We should come over tomorrow. There are some documents you need to sign.
I felt my stomach tighten.
Then another message arrived.
It’ll be easier if you just trust us, Mom. Dad would have wanted us to take care of everything.
I slowly put the phone down.
For forty-six years, Martin had taken care of me.
He had made me feel safe even when the world was uncertain.
And now, after his death, he had left me a trail of instructions that seemed to lead toward something much bigger than a forgotten inheritance.
I looked again at the forged signature.
Then I looked toward the empty chair at the dining table.
“Martin,” I whispered, “what happened while I wasn’t looking?”
I didn’t know the answer yet.
But I knew one thing.
Tomorrow, when Colin and Kara arrived, I would not be signing anything.
And for the first time in my life, I was going to ask my son to explain himself.
Not as a mother hoping to avoid an argument.
But as a woman who had finally decided that being loved was not the same thing as being used.
And then, just as I reached for the telephone to call Daniel Reeves, another envelope slipped from the back of Martin’s folder.
This one wasn’t addressed to me.
It was addressed to Colin.
And written beneath his name were six words that made my blood run cold:
Your father wanted you to know the truth.
I stared at the envelope addressed to Colin.
For several minutes, I couldn’t bring myself to open it.
It was strange.
I had spent forty-six years believing that my husband and I had shared everything. We had built a home together, raised a son, paid our bills, celebrated birthdays, survived arguments, and held each other through the hardest moments of our lives.
Yet here I was, sitting alone in the same house, discovering that Martin had been carrying secrets I had never imagined.
I turned the envelope over.
There was no seal, only a small handwritten note.
Audrey, this letter belongs to Colin. If he comes to you with honesty, give it to him. If he comes asking for money or demanding signatures, keep it until he is ready to hear the truth.
I put it back on the table.
Then I called Daniel Reeves.
Daniel had been our family attorney for almost twenty years.
He had helped Martin prepare our wills, review property agreements, and settle several complicated financial matters.
When he answered, I introduced myself.
“Daniel, it’s Audrey Weller. I’m sorry to call you without an appointment, but Martin left me some documents, and I think I need your help.”
His voice immediately became serious.
“Audrey, I’ve been expecting your call.”
I sat up straight.
“You have?”
“Martin told me that he had left instructions for you. He asked me not to contact you unless you reached out first.”
I looked at the envelope.
“Did he tell you why?”
There was a pause.
“Yes. But I would rather explain everything in person. Are you available this afternoon?”
“Of course.”
“Bring every document Martin left you. And Audrey?”
“Yes?”
“Please don’t sign anything your son or daughter-in-law brings to your house.”
My heart sank.
“Daniel, what exactly is going on?”
