Chapter 6
I read the final sentence over and over.
Someone else accepted the money in my mother's name.
I looked at Lorraine.
"Do you know who?"
She shook her head.
"No, sweetheart."
I stared at the letter.
"Why didn't Mom tell me?"
Lorraine's eyes filled.
"She was trying to protect you."
I swallowed.
"From what?"
"I don't know."
That answer frightened me more than I expected.
My mother had spent years carrying a secret.
A secret connected to stolen retirement funds.
A secret involving someone who had impersonated her.
And now I had no idea who to trust.
I called Marcus.
He answered immediately.
"Nia?"
"There's another letter."
His voice changed.
"What does it say?"
I explained.
For several seconds, he remained silent.
Then he said, "I'm coming."
Twenty minutes later, he arrived at the cafe.
He hugged me tightly.
Then he read the letter.
His jaw tightened.
"Someone received money pretending to be Lillian?"
I nodded.
He looked toward Lorraine.
"Do you remember any unusual payments around that time?"
She thought carefully.
"Only rumors."
"What rumors?"
She lowered her voice.
"That somebody in management received a large settlement."
My stomach tightened.
"Who?"
Lorraine hesitated.
"A woman named Patricia."
I frowned.
"Patricia who?"
"Patricia Grant."
Marcus looked confused.
I recognized the name immediately.
Patricia had been my mother's younger sister.
My aunt.
I hadn't seen her in nearly ten years.
After Mom died, Patricia stopped attending family gatherings.
She claimed she'd moved away because she needed a fresh start.
I always thought she was grieving.
Now I wondered whether she'd been hiding something.
I looked at Lorraine.
"Are you sure?"
She nodded.
"Patricia worked briefly at the hotel. She left around the same time your mother was fired."
My hands began trembling.
Marcus reached for them.
"Nia, we need to investigate before assuming anything."
I nodded.
He was right.
But the possibility hurt.
Another family member.
Another betrayal.
I couldn't bear the thought that my own aunt might have profited from my mother's suffering.
Angela agreed to review the historical payment records.
Meanwhile, Marcus faced increasing pressure from the Whitmore board.
Some directors wanted the investigation narrowed.
Others worried about lawsuits.
A few questioned whether Marcus should remain involved at all.
He came home exhausted.
But he never suggested stopping.
One evening, I found him sitting alone in the mansion library.
He held an old photograph of his father.
I sat beside him.
"Are you okay?"
He shook his head.
"I don't know who he was anymore."
I looked at the photograph.
Adrian Whitmore stood beside a young Marcus.
They were smiling.
I could see the love between them.
Marcus continued.
"My father taught me to work hard. To be honest. To respect people."
His voice cracked.
"Then I find out he took money from employees."
I took his hand.
"He made terrible choices."
Marcus nodded.
"And he tried to correct them."
"Yes."
He stared at the photograph.
"Does that make him a good man or a bad man?"
I thought for a moment.
Then answered honestly.
"I think people can do good and terrible things. But what matters now is making sure the people he hurt receive justice."
Marcus looked at me.
His eyes filled.
"That's why I love you."
I smiled sadly.
"Because I tell you things you don't always want to hear?"
He laughed softly.
"Exactly."
He pulled me into his arms.
For a moment, I forgot about the wedding dress.
The letters.
The investigations.
I simply remembered that we loved each other.
And I needed that reminder.
The following morning, Angela called.
She had located records of a payment made seventeen years earlier.
The amount was two hundred and fifty thousand dollars.
My heart slammed against my ribs.
"Two hundred and fifty thousand?"
Angela nodded.
"The payment was described as a confidential settlement."
I felt sick.
"To whom?"
"The recipient account was opened under Lillian Carter's name."
I closed my eyes.
"But Mom never received it."
"That's what we're investigating."
She continued.
"The account appears to have been controlled by someone using Patricia Grant's contact information."
I stared at the wall.
My aunt.
The woman who used to bring me birthday gifts.
The woman who cried at my mother's funeral.
The woman who promised she'd always be there for me.
I felt betrayed all over again.
"Can we contact her?"
Angela advised against confronting Patricia before the relevant records were reviewed.
She recommended preserving the evidence and allowing investigators to determine whether identity misuse or fraud had occurred.
I agreed.
But that evening, Patricia called me.
I hadn't heard her voice in years.
"Nia, baby."
My stomach tightened.
"Aunt Patricia."
She sounded cheerful.
"I heard you're getting married."
I stared at the phone.
"How did you hear?"
"Family talks."
I remained silent.
Then she said, "I also heard you're asking questions about your mother."
My heart began pounding.
"Yes."
Patricia sighed.
"Sweetheart, you need to leave the past alone."
I felt anger rising.
"Why?"
"Because digging into old problems won't bring Lillian back."
I closed my eyes.
"Did you receive money in her name?"
Silence.
Then Patricia laughed nervously.
"What?"
"Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars."
Her breathing changed.
"Nia, who told you that?"
I felt cold.
"Did you take it?"
She remained silent.
Then she whispered, "You don't understand."
My heart sank.
"Then explain."
Patricia began crying.
"I was trying to help your family."
I stared at the wall.
"By taking money meant for my mother?"
She sobbed.
"Evelyn told me Lillian would never accept it."
My stomach twisted.
"So you accepted it?"
"I thought I could use it to help everyone."
I felt tears rising.
"Did you?"
Silence.
"Aunt Patricia?"
Her voice cracked.
"I lost most of it."
I closed my eyes.
"How?"
"Investments."
I felt physically sick.
The same word.
Investments.
The word people kept using to explain why other people's money had disappeared.
Patricia continued.
"I meant to tell Lillian."
"Did you?"
"No."
My chest tightened.
"She died believing the money had been stolen."
Patricia began sobbing.
"I know."
I wiped my cheeks.
"You let her suffer."
"Nia, please."
I took a breath.
"I can't do this."
Before ending the call, Patricia said something that made me freeze.
"Evelyn didn't just pay me to keep quiet."
I stared at the phone.
"What?"
Her voice dropped.
"She paid me to deliver something to your mother."
My heart began pounding.
"What did you deliver?"
Patricia whispered, "A letter."
I felt cold.
"What letter?"
Then she said the words that changed everything.
"It was supposed to make Lillian believe Adrian had betrayed her."
I stared at the wall.
May you like
Because suddenly, I realized my mother might have spent the final years of her life believing a lie.
And the person who created that lie was still living inside the mansion where I was supposed to become a bride.
