Chapter 5
I had never been so afraid to enter my own home.
The house looked exactly as it always had.
White columns.
A wide front porch.
Grandpa's rocking chair beside the door.
But without him, everything felt unfamiliar.
Adrian stood beside me.
Daniel had arranged for us to return with Aunt Renee and a neutral estate representative.
Grandma hadn't come.
She was staying with a family friend after the memorial confrontation.
The lawyer had advised everyone not to remove or disturb estate records without proper documentation.
I understood.
But waiting felt impossible.
I wanted those letters.
I wanted to know what my father had written.
I wanted to know how many birthdays he'd remembered.
How many times he'd tried to reach me.
We entered through the front door.
The house smelled faintly of Grandpa's favorite lemon soap.
I stopped.
For a second, I expected him to appear from the kitchen.
"Sunshine, you're home!"
But the hallway remained silent.
I felt tears rise.
Adrian noticed.
"You okay?"
I shook my head.
"I keep forgetting he's gone."
He placed a hand on my shoulder.
"I'm sorry, sweetheart."
I looked toward Grandpa's study.
The door was closed.
Aunt Renee stood beside it.
Her hands were trembling.
"Mom always kept the key in her bedroom."
Daniel nodded.
"We won't force anything. The estate representative will document access and arrange a locksmith if necessary."
I waited in the hallway.
Every minute felt endless.
Finally, the cabinet was opened.
Inside were folders, old photographs, envelopes, and a small wooden box.
Renee pointed toward the back.
"That's it."
Daniel carefully removed the box.
He placed it on Grandpa's desk.
Then he opened the lid.
My heart stopped.
Letters.
Dozens of them.
Some were yellowed.
Some were still sealed.
All addressed to me.
Maya Elizabeth Bennett.
I stepped forward.
My hands shook.
"Those are mine?"
Daniel nodded.
"Yes."
I picked up the first envelope.
The date was from eight years earlier.
I had been five.
Only weeks after Mommy died.
I opened it carefully.
My sweet Maya,
I don't know whether this letter will reach you.
I am so sorry about your mother.
Jasmine loved you more than anything.
I know you're hurting.
I wish I could hold you and tell you everything will be okay.
I have been trying to call.
Please know I have not forgotten you.
Love,
Dad.
I began crying.
Adrian stood beside me.
His eyes filled.
"I wrote that after I heard about the accident."
I looked at him.
"You sent it?"
He nodded.
"Certified mail."
I stared at the envelope.
It had been opened.
Then hidden.
I felt sick.
I reached for another.
My seventh birthday.
Another for Christmas.
Another for the day I started third grade.
There were letters about school.
Birthday cards.
Photographs.
Little drawings.
Even a pressed flower from a park Adrian said he wanted to take me to someday.
I couldn't stop crying.
Grandma had kept all of it.
Every attempt my father made.
Every piece of love he'd sent.
Locked inside a cabinet while I cried myself to sleep wondering why he didn't want me.
I looked toward Aunt Renee.
She was sobbing.
"I'm sorry, Maya."
I couldn't answer.
I wasn't ready.
Daniel gently suggested we preserve the letters before taking them home.
I nodded.
I wanted to read every one.
But I also wanted proof.
Proof that I hadn't been forgotten.
Then I noticed another envelope beneath the letters.
It was addressed to Grandpa.
Marcus Bennett.
The return address belonged to Adrian's attorney.
Daniel opened it after confirming it was part of the estate records.
Inside was correspondence about attempts to establish visitation.
There were dates.
Court references.
Copies of unanswered requests.
I looked at Adrian.
"You tried to get custody?"
He shook his head.
"I tried to establish regular contact and parenting time."
I frowned.
"What's the difference?"
He crouched beside me.
"I wanted to be part of your life. I wasn't trying to erase your relationship with your grandparents."
My throat tightened.
"Grandma said you wanted to steal me."
Adrian's face crumpled.
"No, sweetheart."
I hugged him.
He held me tightly.
For the first time, I understood how much we'd both lost.
Not because we didn't love each other.
Because someone had decided that love was inconvenient.
Daniel continued examining the records.
Then his expression changed.
"Adrian."
My father looked up.
"What?"
Daniel held a document.
"This is significant."
I stepped closer.
It was a letter from Grandpa to Claire.
I recognized his handwriting.
Claire,
I have discovered the correspondence you withheld from Maya.
This must stop immediately.
She deserves to know her father.
We will discuss this with Daniel and take proper steps to correct the situation.
I will not allow fear or resentment to steal another year from that child.
Marcus.
My eyes filled.
Grandpa had discovered the letters.
He'd confronted Grandma.
And he had been trying to fix everything.
I touched his signature.
"He knew."
Daniel nodded.
"Yes."
I swallowed.
"Why didn't he tell me?"
Daniel looked sad.
"He planned to do so after confirming the legal arrangements. His health declined quickly."
I looked toward Grandpa's empty chair.
I wanted to be angry with him.
Part of me was.
He should have told me sooner.
But I also knew he had been trying to protect me from another disappointment.
I whispered, "I wish he'd had more time."
Adrian nodded.
"So do I."
Then the estate representative found a small ledger.
It contained handwritten notes about payments, bank accounts, and property expenses.
Daniel examined it carefully.
His expression hardened.
"What is it?" I asked.
He looked toward Aunt Renee.
"These entries need to be reviewed."
My stomach tightened.
"Why?"
Daniel pointed toward several transactions.
"Some withdrawals appear to have been made from accounts designated for Maya's care."
I stared.
"What does that mean?"
He answered gently.
"It means we need to verify how money intended to support you was used."
I looked around the house.
Grandma had bought a new car last year.
She'd taken expensive trips.
She'd spent money on jewelry.
But whenever I asked for school supplies, she complained that raising me was expensive.
I felt cold.
"Did she take my money?"
Daniel shook his head.
"We don't know yet. An independent accounting will tell us more."
I nodded.
I appreciated his honesty.
Then I noticed something beneath the ledger.
A small envelope with my name written in Grandpa's handwriting.
It was different from the cream envelope at the memorial.
This one was blue.
I picked it up.
Daniel examined the outside.
Then nodded.
"You can open it."
My hands trembled.
Inside was a photograph of Grandpa holding me as a baby.
On the back, he had written:
Maya, never let anyone make you believe you were unwanted.
I stared at the words.
Then I began crying so hard I could barely breathe.
Adrian wrapped his arms around me.
I held the photograph against my chest.
For years, I'd believed I was a burden.
Now I had proof that two men had loved me deeply.
One was gone.
The other was standing beside me.
And both had been fighting to protect me.
Then Daniel's phone rang.
He answered.
His expression changed.
I watched him carefully.
"What happened?"
Daniel listened.
Then looked toward the cabinet.
"Are you certain?"
My stomach tightened.
He ended the call.
Adrian stepped forward.
"Daniel?"
The attorney looked at us.
"The estate's financial administrator found something unusual."
I swallowed.
"What?"
Daniel hesitated.
Then spoke quietly.
"Someone submitted a request to transfer the house out of Maya's trust."
My heart stopped.
"Our house?"
He nodded.
"And the request was filed two days after Marcus died."
I stared.
Grandpa had been gone only three days.
Someone had started trying to take my home almost immediately.
I looked toward the empty hallway.
May you like
Then at the letters Grandma had hidden.
And I realized she wasn't finished.
