On the mantelpiece was a picture of Evelyn and Monica standing together at a beach.
Marcus looked at it.
For a moment, he almost forgot why he had come.
Then Monica spoke.
“What's wrong?”
Marcus turned.
“Did you use my mother's identity?”
Her smile disappeared.
“What?”
“Did you help Daniel take money from her accounts?”
Monica stared at him.
Then she looked toward Andre.
“Who is this?”
“Someone who knows what happened.”
She laughed nervously.
“Marcus, I don't know what you've been told, but this is ridiculous.”
“Did you sign documents using my mother's name?”
“Absolutely not.”
“Did you help Daniel?”
Monica folded her arms.
“Daniel was trying to help you.”
Marcus felt his stomach tighten.
“Help me?”
“Yes. Your mother was getting older. She didn't understand how complicated your business had become. Daniel was trying to protect the family.”
Marcus stepped forward.
“Then why did he use her signature?”
Monica looked away.
He noticed it.
The hesitation.
The tiny movement of her eyes.
“Answer me.”
She sighed.
“Your mother was becoming difficult.”
Marcus stared.
“What?”
“She was questioning everything. She didn't understand that business requires risks.”
“She was asking about her own money.”
“And she was putting your future at risk!”
The words came out louder than she intended.
Marcus froze.
Monica seemed to realize what she had said.
She looked down.
Andre stepped forward.
“Mrs. Reed, we're asking you to explain your involvement in the transfers.”
Monica looked at him.
“I don't know who you think you are.”
“I'm the investigator your sister hired.”
Her face changed.
For a moment, the mask slipped completely.
Then she laughed.
“Evelyn hired you?”
“Yes.”
Monica shook her head.
“That woman never knew when to stop.”
Marcus stared at her.
“Why?”
Monica turned toward him.
“Because I was tired.”
“Tired of what?”
“Tired of watching her sacrifice everything for you.”
Marcus frowned.
“What are you talking about?”
“She worked herself to death raising you. She gave you everything. And what did she get in return? A son who was too busy chasing money to spend time with her.”
Marcus looked as though he had been slapped.
“That isn't true.”
“Isn't it?”
Monica stepped closer.
“When she needed you, you were at the office. When she wanted to talk, you were on the phone. When she asked you to slow down, you told her you were building something important.”
Marcus's eyes filled.
He knew there was truth in some of it.
But that didn't justify what had happened.
“You stole from her.”
Monica's face hardened.
“I didn't steal anything.”
“Then explain the accounts.”
She looked toward Andre.
He remained silent.
Monica took a breath.
“Daniel came to me with a proposal. He said the company needed temporary financing. He said your mother had agreed to help.”
“She hadn't.”
“I didn't know that.”
“You signed the documents.”
“I was told they were legitimate.”
“Then why did you lie to her?”
Monica looked at him.
The room became very quiet.
Finally, she said, “Because she wouldn't have understood.”
Marcus shook his head.
“She understood enough to know you were lying.”
Monica's expression changed.
“Your mother was going to ruin everything.”
“What?”
“She was going to go to the police.”
Andre stepped forward.
“Did Daniel ask you to prevent that?”
Monica didn't answer.
“Mrs. Reed, did Daniel ask you to stop your sister from reporting the fraud?”
Monica looked at the floor.
Marcus felt his heart pounding.
“Answer him.”
She looked up.
“Yes.”
The word was barely audible.
Marcus stepped backward.
He couldn't believe it.
His aunt had known.
She had known that his mother was being robbed.
And instead of protecting her, she had helped the people responsible.
“Why?” he whispered.
Monica's eyes filled.
“Because I was afraid.”
“Of what?”
“Of losing everything.”
Marcus laughed bitterly.
“You had a house. You had money. You had a family.”
“I had nothing!”
The sudden outburst startled him.
Monica wiped her face.
“Your mother always had everything. She had a son who adored her. She had a home. She had people who respected her. I spent my entire life watching her get what I never had.”
Marcus stared.
“You were jealous?”
Monica shook her head.
“It's more complicated than that.”
“No. It isn't.”
“You don't understand.”
“Then explain it.”
Monica looked at him.
And for the first time, she seemed genuinely ashamed.
“Daniel promised me a share of the company.”
Marcus frowned.
“What?”
“He said he could make me a partner. He said I could finally have something of my own.”
“You helped him steal from your sister for a business share?”
“He said the money would be replaced.”
Marcus shook his head.
“Was that worth it?”
Monica began crying.
“I didn't think it would go this far.”
“But it did.”
She covered her face.
Marcus looked around the room.
The photographs.
The furniture.
The memories.
Everything seemed different now.
He remembered the first time he had visited this house after his father left.
Monica had made him a sandwich and sat with him while he cried.
He remembered her telling him that family was supposed to protect one another.
He looked at her now.
“You were supposed to protect her.”
Monica couldn't answer.
Marcus turned toward the door.
Behind him, she whispered his name.
“Marcus.”
He stopped.
“I loved your mother.”
He looked back.
“Then you should have acted like it.”
And he walked out.
The drive back to the city was almost unbearable.
Marcus sat in the passenger seat while Andre drove.
For the first twenty minutes, neither man spoke.