Chapter 6: The Night My Mother Died
I couldn't move.
My father stood beside the old wooden trunk, staring at the floor.
Elizabeth looked as if someone had struck her.
“Richard,” she said carefully.
“What exactly are you telling us?””
He rubbed both hands over his face.
“Diane and Laura knew each other long before I met either of them.””
I looked at him.
“How?””
“They worked at the same office.””
“What office?””
“A property management company. Laura was an accountant. Diane handled administrative work.””
I remembered the photograph of Diane outside the hospital.
The date.
The document.
My mother's signature.
“Were they friends?””
My father gave a bitter laugh.
“That's what everyone thought.””
Elizabeth folded her arms.
“Harold told me there had been a disagreement between them.””
Richard nodded.
“It was about money.””
I sat on the edge of the trunk.
“Mom's money?””
“Yes.””
He looked at me.
“Your mother's parents had left her a substantial inheritance. Diane knew about it. She helped Laura organize some of the paperwork.””
Elizabeth's expression tightened.
“And she had access to financial records?””
Richard nodded again.
“That's how it started.””
I stared at him.
“Did Diane steal from Mom?””
He didn't answer.
I stood up.
“Dad!””
He looked at me.
“I don't know everything that happened. I wasn't part of their business arrangements.””
Elizabeth interrupted.
“You were married to Laura.””
“I know that!””
“Then why didn't you investigate when she told you something was wrong?””
Richard's jaw tightened.
“Because I thought she was exaggerating.””
I felt sick.
My father had known my mother was frightened.
He had known she wanted help.
And he had chosen not to believe her.
“Did you love Mom?”” I asked.
His face changed.
“Yes.””
“Then why did you marry Diane?””
He closed his eyes.
For several seconds, he didn't speak.
Finally, he said, “Because she was there when I was falling apart.””
I shook my head.
“Grandpa was there too.””
“I know.””
“He took care of me.””
“I know, Maya.””
“Why didn't you?””
Richard lowered himself onto a wooden chair.
“I don't have a good answer.””
I looked away.
I wanted him to have one.
I wanted him to say that he had been tricked, that he had made one terrible mistake, that everything could still be fixed.
But he didn't.
Elizabeth stepped toward him.
“Tell us about the night Laura died.””
Richard stared at his hands.
“I was supposed to meet her at the hospital.””
“And?””
“I didn't go.””
“Why?””
“Diane called me. She said Laura had been asking for money and making accusations. She told me the doctors believed Laura was confused.””
Elizabeth's voice became quiet.
“Diane wasn't a doctor.””
“I know that now.””
I felt my throat tighten.
“Dad, Mom asked for you?””
He nodded.
“More than once.””
I covered my mouth.
He continued.
“I thought I had time. I thought she would recover.””
Elizabeth pulled out a chair.
“Who told you she had died?””
Richard looked at Diane's empty place near the attic entrance.
“She did.””
I blinked.
“Diane?””
He nodded.
“She called me from the hospital.””
“What did she say?””
He swallowed.
“She told me Laura was gone. She said I needed to think about the future and stop blaming myself.””
Elizabeth's eyes narrowed.
“Was Diane at the hospital when Laura died?””
“I believe so.””
“Did she tell you why?””
“No.””
“Did you ask?””
Richard didn't answer.
Elizabeth slowly shook her head.
“Harold asked those same questions for years.””
I looked at her.
“What did Grandpa find out?””
She opened her briefcase and removed a thin folder.
“After Laura died, Harold requested the hospital's visitor records. He also asked for the original medical reports.””
“Why?””
“Because several details didn't match what the family had been told.””
My heart started racing.
“What details?””
Elizabeth placed two pages on the trunk.
“One report indicated Laura had requested that her attorney be contacted. Another documented a visitor who arrived shortly before her condition deteriorated.””
I stared at the page.
The visitor's name was partially obscured by a black mark.
But the initials were visible.
D.C.
Diane Collins.
My father stood.
“What?””
Elizabeth pointed to the time.
“9:42 p.m.””
Richard shook his head.
“That can't be right.””
“Why?””
“Diane told me she left the hospital before eight.””
Elizabeth didn't respond.
She removed another sheet.
“This is a statement from a nurse who worked that night. Harold obtained it privately before she retired.””
I looked at the handwritten paragraph.
The nurse described a woman arguing with Laura in the hospital room.
The woman had asked for a signature.
Laura refused.
Then the nurse mentioned hearing the woman say:
You should have stayed out of this.
I felt my knees weaken.
“Was that Diane?””
Elizabeth nodded slowly.
“The nurse identified her from a photograph.””
My father backed away.
“No.””
Elizabeth looked at him.
“You need to understand something, Richard. Harold suspected Diane had pressured Laura into signing documents she didn't understand.””
“That's not possible.””
“Why?””
“Because Diane told me Laura had signed everything willingly.””
Elizabeth closed the folder.
“Then why was she asking Harold to keep the original documents hidden?””
My father stared at her.
I looked down at the music box.
The tiny silver key was still inside my hand.
“Can we go to the bank?”” I asked.
Elizabeth turned toward me.
“Yes.””
“Today?””
“We can arrange to have the box opened through the proper legal process. But we must first verify the account holder's instructions and the bank's requirements.””
I nodded.
“Please.””
My father approached me.
“Maya, I think you should wait.””
I stepped away.
“Why?””
“Because whatever is in that box could be upsetting.””
“I've already been upset.””
He looked down.
“I know.””
“You told me Mom abandoned me.””
His eyes filled.
“I was wrong.””
“You let Diane tell me she didn't want me.””
Richard's lips trembled.
“I didn't know she said that.””
“You were never there to hear it.””
He reached for my shoulder.
I moved away.
Elizabeth placed a protective hand behind me.
“Richard, you need to give her some space.””
He nodded.
Then he looked at the music box.
“There's something else.””
I stared at him.
“What?””
He hesitated.
“Your mother gave me a second letter before she died.””
Elizabeth immediately straightened.
“What letter?””
Richard reached into his jacket.
He removed a folded piece of paper.
It had been opened and refolded several times.
I recognized the handwriting.
Laura Collins.
My mother's name.
“I kept it,” he whispered.
“Why didn't you give it to me?””
He looked ashamed.
“Because Diane told me it contained things that would hurt you.””
Elizabeth held out her hand.
“May I see it?””
Richard hesitated before passing it over.
Elizabeth unfolded the letter.
Her eyes moved across the page.
Then she stopped.
She read the final paragraph twice.
“What is it?”” I asked.
She looked at me.
“Maya, your mother wrote this shortly before she died.””
“What's in it?””
Elizabeth swallowed.
Then she read aloud.
Richard, if you are reading this, please remember that I tried to warn you. Diane has been taking money from my accounts, and I have proof.
But the money is not the worst thing.
She knows something about Maya's birth that she has threatened to use against us.
My heart stopped.
I looked at my father.
“What does that mean?””
He didn't move.
Elizabeth continued reading.
If she ever tells you that Maya is not really yours, don't believe her without asking Harold to show you the original hospital records.
I stared at the letter.
“What?””
My father closed his eyes.
Then Elizabeth turned the paper over.
There was one final handwritten sentence.
The truth is in Safe Deposit Box 806.
Nobody spoke.
The silver key in my hand suddenly felt heavier.
I looked at my father.
“Dad?””
He slowly nodded.
“I'm your father, Maya.””
“Then why did Mom write that?””
He looked toward the attic window.
Outside, a dark car had just pulled into Grandpa's driveway.
A woman stepped out.
She wasn't Diane.
She was much older, with silver hair and a walking cane.
Elizabeth recognized her immediately.
Her face went white.
“That's impossible.””
I looked at her.
“Who is she?””
Elizabeth whispered:
“Your mother's mother.””
I blinked.
“My grandmother?””
Elizabeth shook her head.
“No, Maya.””
She looked at the woman approaching the front door.
“Your mother was an only child. And that woman was supposed to have been dead for fifteen years.””
Then the doorbell rang.
May you like
And from downstairs, a woman's voice called out:
“Richard, I know you're in there. We need to talk about the little girl.””
