Chapter 4 - What My Mother Had DoneEvelyn sat with us in a private room.
Lily stayed with a nurse.
Daphne couldn't stop crying.
I couldn't stop staring at her.
“Why didn't you tell us?”
She looked at the floor.
“Because Mom told me you'd hate me.”
I looked at my mother.
“Is that true?”
My mother didn't answer.
“Mom.”
Finally, she whispered:
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because I was afraid.”
“Of what?”
“That Daphne would ruin her life.”
I laughed bitterly.
“So you decided to control it for her?”
My mother began crying.
“I thought I was helping.”
“You lied to everyone.”
“I know.”
“And you kept Lily from her father.”
“I know.”
Brandon's face was devastated.
“I spent four years believing my daughter was dead.”
Evelyn lowered her eyes.
“I tried to tell you.”
“Why didn't you?”
“Because the family lawyer threatened me.”
My father looked stunned.
“What lawyer?”
“Gerald Price.”
My stomach dropped.
Gerald had been our family attorney for twenty years.
He handled Mama's estate.
Our trusts.
Our properties.
Everything.
“What did Gerald do?”
Evelyn pulled out a file.
“He arranged the payment.”
The bank transfer was there.
$75,000.
But there was another document.
A second payment.
$250,000.
From Gerald's firm.
To a company called Harper Family Services.
I looked at Evelyn.
“Why would a lawyer pay that much?”
She hesitated.
“Because the child wasn't the real reason.”
“What was?”
Evelyn looked at my mother.
“Your family had a trust.”
My mother closed her eyes.
The pieces began fitting together.
“Lily was connected to the trust.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because your grandfather created a clause.”
“What clause?”
“If any direct descendant had a child before turning twenty-one, the child would receive a substantial inheritance at age twenty-five.”
I stared at Daphne.
“She was nineteen.”
“Yes.”
“Lily was the heir.”
My mother nodded.
Gerald had wanted control of the money.
So he convinced my mother to hide Lily.
But why?
Because if Lily disappeared, Gerald could manipulate the trust.
I suddenly understood.
The pregnancy announcement cake wasn't just a desperate attempt by Daphne to steal my wedding.
It was part of something bigger.
Daphne had recently discovered Lily was alive.
And she wanted to use the wedding to announce the pregnancy as a distraction.
But she wasn't pregnant.
I looked at her.
“Daphne.”
She froze.
“Are you actually pregnant?”
She looked away.
Brandon answered.
“No.”
My heart sank.
“The cake was fake?”
Daphne nodded.
She started crying.
“I wanted everyone to stop asking why I was unhappy.”
“You lied about a pregnancy?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because I knew Gerald was coming after me.”
I stared at her.
She whispered:
“I needed everyone looking at the wrong thing.”
The reception suddenly made sense.
She hadn't wanted to steal my wedding.
She had wanted to create a public distraction.
But that didn't excuse what she had done.
“You should have told me.”
“I was ashamed.”
I looked at her.
“I was your sister.”
“I know.”
Then Evelyn said:
“There's one more problem.”
May you like
Everyone looked at her.
“Gerald knows Lily is alive.”
Related Stories
