Chapter 8: My Mother’s Last Recording
I couldn’t move.
The room disappeared.
There was only my mother’s face on the screen.
Six years had passed since I heard her voice.
Six years since I watched her become smaller and weaker.
Six years since I sat beside her hospital bed and promised her I would take care of Dad.
And now she was looking at me like she knew exactly what I would be facing.
Like she had seen this moment before it happened.
“Nia,” my mother continued, “before you judge your father, I need you to understand something.””
My father stepped closer.
“No.””
Everyone looked at him.
His voice was barely above a whisper.
“Turn it off.””
I stared at him.
“Why?””
He didn’t answer.
“Why, Dad?””
His face twisted with pain.
“Because she didn’t know everything.””
The video continued.
“My husband made choices that hurt this family.””
My mother took a breath.
“I spent weeks trying to understand why.””
The camera shook slightly.
She was probably holding it herself.
“I wanted to believe there was an explanation.””
I looked at my father.
He looked away.
“But then I found the missing piece.””
The screen changed.
A photograph appeared.
A document.
My mother’s voice continued.
“The night before my surgery, I discovered that someone had accessed my medical records.””
Diane went pale.
My father whispered:
“Nia…”
I ignored him.
My mother continued.
“I thought it was a mistake.””
The image on the screen zoomed in.
A login record.
A name.
My heart stopped.
The account belonged to Diane.
Chloe gasped.
“No.””
Diane shook her head.
“That’s not what it looks like.””
I turned toward her.
“Then tell me what it looks like.””
She had nothing.
My mother’s voice filled the room.
“I confronted Richard.””
The video showed another document.
A written statement.
“He admitted Diane had been helping him.””
I looked at my father.
“Helping him do what?””
The video answered before he could.
“Your father and Diane were searching for a way to access my assets before my death.””
The room exploded.
Diane immediately shook her head.
“That is a lie.””
Evelyn looked at her.
“Then why does the evidence exist?””
“I don’t know!””
Her voice cracked.
“I don’t know what she thought she found.””
I looked back at the screen.
My mother looked directly into the camera.
“Nia, I need you to hear this carefully.””
I leaned closer.
“Your father is not the only person who hurt me.””
A pause.
“But he is the reason I made sure you would always be protected.””
The video ended.
Nobody spoke.
Then the screen went black.
I sat there, unable to process what I had heard.
My father walked toward me.
“Nia.””
I stood immediately.
“Don’t.””
He stopped.
“I can explain.””
I looked at him.
“You had years.””
His face fell.
“You had six years to explain.””
“I was trying to protect you.””
“No.””
My voice shook.
“You were protecting yourself.””
He looked devastated.
But I couldn’t feel sorry for him.
Not yet.
Not after realizing my mother had spent her final days preparing evidence against the people closest to her.
Diane grabbed her purse.
“I’m leaving.””
Everyone looked at her.
My father turned.
“What?””
She laughed bitterly.
“You heard her.””
“You’re just leaving?””
“You were never honest with me either.””
That sentence stunned everyone.
My father stared at her.
“What are you talking about?””
Diane looked at him.
“You promised me the house.””
Silence.
I felt sick.
Not because she wanted the house.
Because she admitted it.
My father’s face changed.
“You knew?””
She looked away.
“I knew enough.””
Chloe stepped back.
“Mom…”
Diane closed her eyes.
“I didn’t think it would go this far.””
Evelyn’s expression hardened.
“Go this far?””
She pointed toward the evidence.
“Your actions may have legal consequences.””
Diane froze.
For the first time, she looked afraid.
Then my father said something unexpected.
Something that made everyone turn.
“She wasn’t the one who started it.””
I stared at him.
“What?””
My father looked at the floor.
“The medical records.””
His voice cracked.
“That wasn’t Diane’s idea.””
The room went silent.
“Then whose was it?””
My father looked at me.
And I saw tears in his eyes.
“Nia…”
He swallowed.
“The person who asked Diane to access those records…”
He hesitated.
May you like
Then said:
“It was someone your mother trusted more than anyone.””
