Chapter 6 - Brooke's Peaceful Home
Brooke called me at 9:07 that morning.
Unlike Nathan, she did not apologize.
She attacked.
“You're destroying Olivia's life.”
I nearly admired the consistency.
“Good morning to you too.”
“You froze the company card.”
“Yes.”
“My mortgage payment comes out tomorrow.”
“You have a mortgage?”
Silence.
That was interesting.
Brooke had spent three years telling everyone she owned her home outright.
“You've been paying it through Hawthorne?” I asked.
“That's none of your business.”
“It became my business when Hawthorne started receiving money from my company.”
“It was Nathan's money too.”
“No.”
I opened the shareholder documents.
“Nathan owns twelve percent.”
Another silence.
I continued.
“I own sixty-eight.”
“You're obsessed with money.”
“You were spending mine.”
“Your father treated Nathan like a servant.”
“My father gave Nathan a job.”
“He never respected our family.”
“My father was apparently smarter than I was.”
Brooke hung up.
Rebecca's forensic accountant arrived before lunch.
Her name was Diane Cho.
Within four hours, Diane found transfers for private school tuition, designer purchases, vacations, a kitchen renovation, and Olivia's horseback riding expenses.
Those did not shock me.
One transaction did.
A monthly payment to a private behavioral clinic.
Not for Olivia.
For Ethan.
I stared at the invoice.
“What is this?”
Rebecca read it.
“Pre-admission consultation.”
My mouth went dry.
The clinic specialized in residential psychiatric treatment for children.
The consultation had begun two months before Ethan's accident.
I could barely speak.
“Why would Nathan be consulting a residential clinic before Ethan was hurt?”
Diane searched the email metadata attached to the invoice.
The account contact was not Nathan.
It was Victoria.
My fingers went numb.
We obtained copies through the corporate email server because the invoices had been sent to a company address.
Victoria had described Ethan as aggressive.
Unstable.
Dangerous to other children.
My son had never been any of those things.
He was quiet.
Sensitive.
He cried when insects died on windowsills.
He apologized to furniture after bumping into it.
Then I found one sentence in Victoria's email.
Placement should occur before Claire reconsideres the estate succession arrangement.
I read it twice.
Estate succession.
Rebecca looked at me.
“What arrangement?”
“My father's will.”
Under my father's estate plan, the property would eventually pass through me to Ethan.
Nathan could live there during our marriage.
Victoria had no ownership interest.
Brooke had none.
If something happened to me, Ethan inherited the controlling trust.
Unless he were declared incapable of managing it.
Rebecca understood immediately.
“This isn't just about Brooke wanting a peaceful home.”
“No.”
I looked at the screen.
“They were building a record.”
A record that made Ethan look unstable.
A record they could someday use to argue he needed a guardian.
And if that guardian were Nathan, Victoria could keep controlling the estate.
My stomach turned.
A knock came from the apartment hallway.
I checked the camera.
Olivia stood outside.
Alone.
Holding a backpack.
I opened the door.
She looked terrified.
“My mom doesn't know I'm here.”
I let her inside.
Then she handed me a small blue notebook.
“Grandma told me to throw this away.”
I opened it.
Every page contained dates.
Times.
Descriptions of Ethan's behavior.
Some were ordinary.
ETHAN CRIED DURING DINNER.
ETHAN REFUSED TO GO DOWNSTAIRS.
ETHAN SAID HE HATES GRANDMA.
Others were worse.
ETHAN THREATENED OLIVIA.
ETHAN BROKE GLASS ON PURPOSE.
ETHAN ATTACKED NATHAN.
Olivia shook her head.
“Those things didn't happen.”
I looked at her.
“How do you know?”
May you like
Her eyes filled with tears.
“Because Grandma made me practice saying they did.”
