Chapter 3: What My Mother Knew
I didn't go home immediately.
I drove to the small house my mother had left me on the outskirts of Nashville.
The porch light was still broken. A wind chime hung beside the front door, tapping softly against the wooden post.
I'd planned to move into that house with Daniel after the wedding.
Now I couldn't imagine sharing a roof with him.
I placed the salon documents on the kitchen table and made myself a cup of coffee.
It went cold before I took a sip.
Brianna's words kept replaying in my head.
Mom didn't want you marrying Daniel.
Why?
My mother had attended our engagement party. She'd hugged Daniel, kissed my forehead, and told everyone she couldn't wait to see me walk down the aisle.
I'd even shown her photographs of the dress.
She'd cried when she saw the lace from her own wedding gown.
"Your grandmother would have loved this," she'd whispered.
So why would she secretly arrange for Brianna to wear it?
My phone rang.
Daniel.
I declined.
He called again.
Then a message appeared.
*Daniel:* We need to talk. Please don't do anything stupid.
I stared at the screen.
*Me:* You have five minutes to explain why my dead mother's signature is on a document authorizing you to spend my savings.
His reply came immediately.
*Daniel:* Your mother wanted Brianna to have a chance at happiness.
I felt sick.
*Me:* With my fiancé?
No response.
I called my mother's old attorney, Margaret Ellis.
She'd handled the estate and helped me transfer the house into my name.
When she answered, I spoke quickly.
"Margaret, I need to ask you something about Mom's estate.""
"Of course, Emily. What's happened?""
I explained the bridal salon, the forged-looking signature, and the wedding package.
Margaret was silent for several seconds.
Then she asked a question that made my stomach tighten.
"Did the salon show you a document dated before your mother's death?""
"Yes. Six weeks before.""
"Did you see whether it was witnessed?""
I looked at the papers.
"There's a witness signature.""
"Whose?""
I read the name.
"Daniel Whitmore.""
Margaret inhaled sharply.
"Emily, I think you need to come to my office tomorrow morning.""
"Why?""
"Because your mother came to see me shortly before she died. She asked me to prepare a document concerning Daniel.""
I gripped the edge of the table.
"What document?""
"I don't want to speculate over the phone. But she specifically instructed me not to release it unless you asked about Daniel's financial involvement in your wedding.""
My blood ran cold.
"She knew he was stealing from me?""
"She suspected something.""
I closed my eyes.
Margaret continued.
"Emily, did your mother leave you a small wooden jewelry box?""
"Yes. It's upstairs.""
"Please bring it with you tomorrow. She asked me to tell you to check beneath the velvet lining.""
The call ended.
I went upstairs.
Mom's jewelry box sat on the dresser, exactly where I'd left it after sorting through her belongings.
It was dark cherry wood, with a tiny brass lock.
Inside were her wedding earrings, a gold bracelet, and the engagement ring my father had given her.
I removed everything.
Then I lifted the velvet lining.
A folded envelope was taped underneath.
My name was written across the front.
Emily.
I sat on the edge of the bed.
The handwriting was hers.
My fingers trembled as I opened it.
My sweet girl,
If you're reading this, something happened that I was afraid to tell you while I was alive.
I need you to understand that loving someone doesn't mean trusting them with everything.
Daniel came to see me several months ago. He asked about your inheritance, your savings, and the house.
I stopped reading.
Daniel had asked about my inheritance?
I continued.
At first, I believed he was simply trying to plan your future. But then I found out he'd been discussing your finances with Brianna.
A tear slipped down my cheek.
I confronted him. He told me he was helping your sister because she was struggling. He promised he would never hurt you.
I wanted to believe him.
The next paragraph was underlined.
Then I discovered that he had been using your wedding account for expenses you never approved.
I pressed the letter against my chest.
Mom had known.
She'd known something was wrong and hadn't told me.
Why?
I kept reading.
I made a mistake, Emily. I signed something I should never have signed. Daniel told me it was a temporary authorization so he could organize the wedding while you were working.
My eyes moved to the final paragraph.
But when I discovered what he had actually done, I prepared a way to protect you. Margaret has the original documents.
Please don't confront Brianna until you know everything.
There is something about the two of you that I should have told you years ago.
I stopped breathing.
The letter ended with one final sentence.
The dress was never meant to be the only thing you inherited from me.
I read it again.
Then I turned the paper over.
There was a small handwritten note at the bottom.
Ask Margaret about the blue envelope.
I searched the jewelry box again.
Nothing.
I checked the dresser, the closet, and the drawers.
Then my phone vibrated.
A message from an unknown number.
*Unknown:* Emily, please don't trust Margaret. Your mother left something with me before she died.
I stared at the screen.
Another message appeared.
*Unknown:* Daniel doesn't know I have it.
Then a photograph arrived.
It showed my mother sitting at a restaurant table with Brianna.
The date was printed beneath the image.
Three days before Mom died.
But that wasn't what made my hands shake.
My mother was holding a document.
And Brianna was pointing at a photograph beside it.
A photograph of me.
I zoomed in.
On the table, beside Mom's hand, was a blue envelope.
The exact envelope she'd mentioned in her letter.
I typed a reply.
*Me:* Who is this?
The answer came seconds later.
*Unknown:* Someone who knows why your mother wanted Brianna to wear your wedding dress.
Then the person sent one more message.
*Unknown:* And Emily, the wedding you discovered at the salon wasn't the first one Daniel planned.
I stared at the screen.
A second photograph appeared.
This one showed Daniel standing outside a courthouse.
Beside him was a woman wearing a white dress.
The photograph was dated four years earlier.
May you like
And the woman wasn't Brianna.
It was me.
