Chapter 9 - The Missing Money
Aunt Carol arrived that evening with a folder.
She was Diane’s younger sister.
For years, she had been quiet during family conflict.
Tonight, she looked ashamed.
“I should have told you sooner.”
Natalie poured coffee.
“Told me what?”
“Your mother gambles.”
Natalie stared at her.
“What?”
“Not casinos.”
“Online betting.”
“Sports.”
“Cards.”
“Some investment app that’s basically gambling.”
Natalie sat slowly.
“How long?”
“At least six years.”
Six years.
The same period Natalie had been covering increasingly large emergencies.
“The roof?”
Carol looked down.
“The roof needed repairs.”
“But not fourteen thousand dollars’ worth.”
Natalie’s stomach dropped.
“How much?”
“Maybe six.”
“The rest?”
“I don’t know.”
“The furnace?”
“That one was real.”
“The home-equity arrears?”
Carol closed her eyes.
“Mostly gambling debt.”
Natalie felt physically ill.
Diane had cried on the phone.
She said the bank might take the house.
Natalie had transferred $18,000 the next morning.
“What about the medical deductible?”
Carol hesitated.
“Your mother’s insurance covered most of that surgery.”
Natalie’s hands went cold.
“How much did she actually owe?”
“About sixteen hundred.”
Natalie had paid $5,400.
Diane had not only accepted help.
She had inflated emergencies.
Maybe fabricated some completely.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
Carol’s eyes filled with tears.
“Because Diane said you liked being the successful one.”
“She said helping made you feel superior.”
Natalie almost laughed.
That was clever.
Make the victim’s generosity sound like ego.
Then anyone exposing the lie would appear jealous.
Carol slid another paper across the table.
Bank statements.
Diane had accidentally left them at Carol’s house months earlier.
There were repeated deposits from Natalie.
Then transfers out to betting platforms.
Natalie stared at one date.
The $8,430 reunion payment from the previous summer.
She had transferred it directly to Diane because Diane claimed she had paid the cabins herself.
But Natalie had also paid the cabins through her own card.
She checked the ledger.
Her stomach dropped.
Diane had asked for reimbursement for an expense Natalie had already paid.
Eight thousand four hundred thirty dollars.
Double payment.
Natalie had missed it because she trusted her mother.
Carol whispered:
“There’s more.”
“How much more?”
“Your grandmother left Diane a small investment account.”
“I know.”
“She emptied it.”
“When?”
“Three years ago.”
Natalie frowned.
“Mom told us Grandma’s account was being preserved for future family reunions.”
Carol shook her head.
“It’s gone.”
Natalie sat in silence.
All those speeches.
Family tradition.
Family loyalty.
Sacrifice.
And behind them, Diane had been secretly draining everyone she could.
Then Carol said something that changed the situation again.
“I think she tried to use Lena’s name for credit.”
May you like
Natalie looked up sharply.
“What did you say?”
