Chapter 6
Dad stared at Vanessa like he hadn't heard correctly.
“Your boyfriend sent this?”
She nodded slowly.
My stomach turned.
“Why?”
“I don't know.”
Dad stood.
“Call him.”
“Dad—”
“Now.”
Vanessa pulled her phone halfway from her pocket before remembering Dad still had it.
Her face reddened.
He handed it to her.
“Speaker.”
She called Tyler.
He answered almost immediately.
“Hey, babe.”
Vanessa's voice shook.
“Did you send five hundred dollars to my dad?”
Silence.
Then Tyler laughed awkwardly.
“Oh. Yeah.”
Dad stepped closer.
“Why?”
Tyler stopped laughing.
“Mr. Carter?”
“Answer the question.”
Another silence.
“Vanessa asked me to.”
We all looked at her.
Vanessa's mouth fell open.
“No, I didn't.”
“Yes, you did.”
“When?”
“Tuesday.”
Her face changed.
“Tyler, I asked if I could borrow five hundred dollars.”
“Right.”
“I never told you to send it to Dad.”
“You texted me the account information.”
“No, I didn't.”
Tyler sounded confused.
“Yes, you did.”
Dad held out his hand.
“Show me.”
Vanessa opened her messages.
She scrolled.
Then stopped.
Her face lost all color.
“There are messages.”
I stepped closer.
The conversation showed Vanessa asking Tyler for five hundred dollars.
Then another message contained Dad's payment information.
Finally:
Send it there. Put CHILD SUPPORT — MAYA in the note.
Vanessa shook her head violently.
“I didn't write this.”
Dad frowned.
“It's your phone.”
“I know.”
She scrolled further.
“Look at the time.”
The message had been sent at 2:14 Wednesday afternoon.
Vanessa looked at me.
“I was at work.”
“That doesn't prove anything.”
“My phone wasn't.”
She swallowed.
“I left it here charging.”
Dad's eyes narrowed.
“Who was home?”
Nobody answered.
We all knew.
Grandma.
Tyler's voice came through the phone.
“Vanessa, what's going on?”
She closed her eyes.
“I'll call you back.”
Then she hung up.
The room felt colder.
Dad looked at the transfer again.
“So Mom used Vanessa's phone to get money from Tyler.”
“And made it look like Mom was paying child support,” I said.
Dad nodded.
Vanessa looked sick.
“She used me.”
For once, there was no satisfaction in seeing her realize it.
Grandma had protected Vanessa for years.
But apparently even Vanessa was disposable when Grandma needed her.
Dad took screenshots.
Then he called the bank.
The transfer could be reversed.
More importantly, they could document that the payment had not originated from my mother.
Another piece of proof.
Another lie exposed.
Vanessa sat at the table staring at nothing.
“I can't believe she did that.”
I looked at her.
“I can.”
She flinched.
“That wasn't fair.”
“Wasn't it?”
Her eyes met mine.
I immediately regretted the cruelty in my voice.
But I didn't take it back.
Vanessa nodded slowly.
“No.”
She whispered.
“I guess it was fair.”
Dad ended the call.
“We need to send this information to the scholarship office.”
“I'll write a statement,” Vanessa said.
Dad looked surprised.
“So will Tyler.”
I stared at her.
“You'd do that?”
She looked at me.
“Grandma used my phone to frame your application.”
Her eyes filled.
“I let a lot of things happen because I was jealous.”
She shook her head.
“But I won't let this happen.”
Something shifted between us.
Not forgiveness.
But maybe the beginning of trust.
Mom called again later.
This time she sounded furious.
Grandma had finally admitted using Vanessa's phone.
“She keeps saying she was trying to keep the family together,” Mom said.
Dad laughed bitterly.
“She nearly tore it apart.”
Mom sighed.
“I agree.”
Dad went silent.
So did I.
Mom agreeing with Dad was rare enough.
Mom admitting Grandma was wrong felt historic.
“I'm bringing her back tomorrow,” Mom said.
I stiffened.
“To our house?”
“No.”
Mom paused.
“She can stay with Denise for a while.”
Dad nodded.
“Good.”
“I think everybody needs space.”
For once, Mom sounded like a mother instead of a referee trying to avoid making Grandma angry.
Then she asked for me.
Dad handed me the phone.
“Maya?”
“Yeah?”
“I owe you an apology.”
I sat down.
“For what?”
“For dismissing you earlier.”
Her voice softened.
“I spent a lot of years letting your grandmother decide what was best for everybody.”
I didn't know what to say.
Mom continued.
“And maybe I left partly because I didn't know how to stand up to her.”
That shocked me.
Dad looked away.
There was history in his face.
Pain I didn't understand yet.
“Mom.”
“I should have told you about her call immediately.”
“Yes.”
“I know.”
For once, she didn't defend herself.
“I am sorry.”
I swallowed.
“Thank you.”
When the call ended, Dad remained quiet.
“What did she mean?” I asked.
“About Grandma?”
Dad sat across from me.
“That story belongs partly to your mother.”
“Tell me your part.”
He sighed.
“When you were little, your mother and Grandma fought constantly.”
“About what?”
“You.”
That answer hurt.
“Grandma thought your mother wasn't responsible enough.”
Dad rubbed his forehead.
“And your mother felt judged every day.”
“Were you on Grandma's side?”
His silence answered me.
“At first.”
I stared at him.
He looked ashamed.
“I thought I was keeping peace.”
The phrase sounded familiar.
Grandma's favorite excuse.
Dad noticed too.
“I didn't understand back then that keeping peace sometimes means asking the quieter person to suffer.”
My eyes burned.
He reached across the table.
“I won't make that mistake with you.”
This time I took his hand.
The next afternoon, the university called.
Mrs. Patel sounded relieved.
“The review is complete.”
My breath stopped.
“And?”
“Your scholarship is fully confirmed.”
I closed my eyes.
Dad hugged me before I even finished the call.
Vanessa screamed.
Actually screamed.
For me.
But Mrs. Patel wasn't done.
“There is one more matter.”
I sat back down.
“What?”
“The anonymous report contained information that suggests your grandmother may have obtained portions of your application without authorization.”
I frowned.
“How?”
“That is what we need to determine.”
My relief disappeared.
Because suddenly I remembered something.
May you like
The only printed copy of my scholarship application had been locked in Dad's desk.
And Grandma had never been given the key.
