Chapter 8 - What Arthur Had Been HidingAfter the arrests, Arthur stayed with us.
For the first time, our family had breakfast together.
It felt strange.
Wonderful.
Painful.
One morning, Arthur asked me to sit beside him.
“There is something else.”
I sighed.
“Of course there is.”
He smiled.
“Your mother never told you why she chose you to inherit everything.”
“I thought it was because I'm the oldest daughter.”
“She chose you because you were the only one who wanted nothing.”
I laughed.
“That doesn't sound like me.”
“It does to me.”
He handed me a document.
Mama had transferred several properties into my name years earlier.
Properties I hadn't known existed.
Their total value exceeded $12 million.
I stared at him.
“Why?”
“She wanted you protected.”
I shook my head.
“She did too much.”
“She was your mother.”
Then he smiled.
“And she knew you would do something good with it.”
I thought about the foundation I could build.
Scholarships.
Medical assistance.
Housing.
Support for families dealing with financial abuse.
I knew exactly what I wanted.
I would use the money to help people who had been left vulnerable by someone else's greed.
Months later, the foundation opened.
I named it after Mama.
The Margaret Elena Foundation.
At the opening ceremony, Rebecca stood beside me.
Julian attended through video.
Arthur sat in the front row.
I looked at him.
For six years, I had believed he abandoned us.
Now I understood that he had spent six years protecting us from the shadows.
May you like
Sometimes the truth hurts.
But lies can hurt more.
