Chapter 4: The Second Will
"Second will?""
My voice sounded strange, almost unfamiliar.
Vanessa stood frozen beside her chair. Her perfectly styled hair had begun slipping out of place, and her fingers were wrapped so tightly around her purse that her knuckles turned white.
My father looked at her.
"Vanessa, sit down.""
"No," I said.
"She brought it up. Now somebody is going to explain it.""
Mrs. Thompson approached the microphone.
"Everyone, please remain calm. We need to make sure Emily is safe.""
My father climbed another step toward the stage.
"Sweetheart, this isn't the place.""
I stepped backward.
"You've been telling me that my entire life. It wasn't the place to ask about Mom. It wasn't the place to ask about the money. It wasn't the place to ask why Vanessa hated me.""
"That's not true.""
"Then explain the will.""
He closed his eyes.
Vanessa suddenly grabbed her purse and headed toward the auditorium doors.
"Where are you going?"" I shouted.
She stopped.
"Home. I'm not participating in this circus.""
"Vanessa, you just mentioned my mother's second will.""
She turned around.
"Your mother was sick, Emily. She wasn't thinking clearly.""
My heart began pounding.
"What illness?""
Vanessa glanced at my father.
He shook his head slightly.
She ignored him.
"Your mother had been diagnosed with a heart condition. She was taking medication, and there were concerns about her judgment.""
"That's a lie," I whispered.
"How would you know? You were twelve.""
I looked at my father.
"Did Mom have a heart condition?""
He hesitated.
That hesitation told me more than any answer could.
A woman sitting near the aisle suddenly stood.
She was in her early sixties, with silver hair and a navy-blue blazer.
"That's enough, Marcus.""
My father turned.
"Aunt Patricia?""
I recognized her immediately.
Patricia Reed was my mother's older sister. I hadn't seen her in almost four years.
After my mother's funeral, Dad had told me that Patricia wanted nothing to do with us.
He said she had moved away.
He said she was difficult.
He said she had chosen to abandon the family.
Now she was standing in the auditorium, holding a large brown envelope.
"Patricia," my father said, his voice tightening.
"You shouldn't be here.""
She walked toward the stage.
"I've been waiting six years for someone to ask the right questions.""
I stared at her.
"Why didn't you visit me?""
Her expression softened.
"Because your father told me you didn't want to see me.""
I felt the floor shift beneath my feet.
"He said that?""
"Every time I called. Every letter I sent came back unopened.""
She looked at Marcus.
"You even changed her school records so I couldn't contact her through the district.""
My father stepped forward.
"You're making accusations without understanding the circumstances.""
Patricia placed the envelope on the podium.
"I understand perfectly.""
She turned to me.
"Your mother came to see me two days before she died. She gave me copies of her will and asked me to keep them safe.""
I opened the envelope.
Inside were several legal documents, all bearing my mother's signature.
The first page contained a paragraph highlighted in yellow.
I read it twice.
Then a third time.
My mother had established a trust for me.
Its value at the time of her death was approximately $750,000.
The money was intended to cover my education, housing, and living expenses until I turned twenty-five.
The trustee was supposed to be an independent attorney.
But the second will contained something else.
A clause stating that if my father attempted to transfer, conceal, or misuse the trust funds, custody of the trust would immediately pass to Patricia.
I looked up.
"Where is the money?""
Patricia swallowed.
"That's what I've been trying to find out.""
My father reached for the documents.
Patricia pulled them away.
"Don't touch those.""
Vanessa laughed nervously.
"This is ridiculous. That money was used for family expenses.""
Patricia turned toward her.
"Which family expenses? Your new house? Brianna's private school? The vacation property in Florida?""
Vanessa's face changed.
I looked at my father.
"Did you use Mom's money to buy those things?""
He rubbed his forehead.
"I was managing the estate.""
"That's not what I asked.""
"Emily, I made decisions I believed were necessary.""
Patricia shook her head.
"Your mother specifically prohibited him from controlling that money.""
My father suddenly raised his voice.
"Because she was paranoid!""
The auditorium went silent again.
Patricia slowly removed another document.
"Then perhaps you'd like to explain why your signature appears on a transfer authorization dated eleven days after Laura's funeral.""
She placed it beside the will.
My father stared at the page.
Vanessa backed away.
May you like
And then Patricia said something I wasn't prepared to hear.
"There's another reason Laura changed her will, Emily. She discovered someone in this family had been stealing from her long before she died.""
