Chapter 13 - My Mother-in-Law Made One Mistake
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Evelyn called while I was driving home from Andrea's office.
I almost declined the call.
Then I answered through the car's speaker.
“Claire, we need to put an end to this foolishness.”
I kept my eyes on the road.
“What foolishness?”
“This business with lawyers and banks.”
I said nothing.
“Daniel is under tremendous stress. You know how sensitive he is.”
“He borrowed against our house without telling me.”
“He was trying to support his family.”
“Which family, Evelyn?”
She paused.
“Don't be disrespectful.”
I tightened my hands around the steering wheel.
“I have paid your bills for years. Your daughter hit me. Your husband threw me out. And now you want me to pretend nothing happened.”
Evelyn sighed.
“You're making everything about money.”
“No. I'm making it about honesty.”
Then she said something unexpected.
“Sometimes paperwork doesn't reflect what a family has agreed upon.”
I frowned.
“What paperwork?”
“You know perfectly well.”
“I don't.”
She hesitated.
Then spoke more slowly.
“Daniel said those bank forms were only temporary.”
I pulled into a parking lot.
“Evelyn, how do you know about the bank forms?”
Silence.
“Daniel told me.”
“When?”
“Recently.”
“What exactly did he tell you?”
Her voice sharpened.
“I'm not being interrogated by my own daughter-in-law.”
I turned off the engine.
“Then answer one simple question. Did you know he was borrowing against our house?”
“Claire—”
“Did you know?”
A long pause.
Finally, she whispered:
“I knew there were arrangements.”
My heart began pounding.
“What arrangements?”
“I thought you had agreed.”
“Who told you that?”
“Daniel.”
“And you believed him?”
“Why wouldn't I?”
I wanted to scream.
Instead, I asked something else.
“Why did Walter need fifty-one thousand dollars?”
Evelyn breathed in sharply.
“That's private.”
“It was paid with money borrowed against my home. It isn't private anymore.”
She said nothing.
“Was it really for property taxes?”
“Your father-in-law had an obligation.”
“What obligation?”
“I can't discuss this.”
“Can't or won't?”
Her next words came out almost as a whisper.
“You need to stop before this gets worse.”
Then the call ended.
I sat in the parking lot for several minutes.
Evelyn had never expressed fear of me before.
Contempt, yes.
Disapproval, constantly.
But fear?
That was new.
I opened my notes and wrote down everything she'd said while it was fresh.
Then I forwarded the summary to Andrea.
Ten minutes later, my attorney called.
“Claire, did Evelyn actually say she knew there were arrangements?”
“Yes.”
Andrea paused.
“Then I'd like to know what arrangements she's talking about.”
I looked at the darkening sky.
So would I.
May you like
Because someone in that family had known about the borrowed money before Christmas.
And I was beginning to suspect Daniel hadn't made every decision alone.
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