Chapter 5 - THE PANTRY
Alex waited until the last guest had left.
Evelyn remained by the dining table with her purse over one shoulder.
“You embarrassed me.”
Alex ignored her.
“Give me the pantry key.”
“No.”
Maya looked at him sharply.
Alex did too.
His mother had always been controlling.
But she usually disguised control as concern.
The direct refusal sounded different.
“Give me the key.”
“It contains things Maya has been irresponsible with.”
Alex stared at her.
“It’s my pantry.”
“Exactly.”
“No. It’s our pantry.”
He held out his hand.
Evelyn crossed her arms.
Chloe whispered:
“My crackers are in there.”
Alex’s jaw tightened.
He reached for the chain.
Then stopped.
He was not going to rip anything from his mother’s neck.
“Take it off.”
She laughed.
“You’re choosing them over me.”
The sentence was so absurd Alex almost missed what it revealed.
This had never been about food.
“You’re my mother,” he said. “They are my wife and child. There is no competition unless you created one.”
Maya looked away.
Evelyn removed the necklace.
Dropped it onto the counter.
“Fine.”
Alex unlocked the pantry.
The first thing he saw was food.
Too much food.
Cereal.
Granola bars.
Crackers.
Fruit cups.
Protein snacks.
Several unopened bags of groceries.
Things Chloe had been told they were “saving.”
Things Maya had been told the household could not afford to waste.
Then he saw the plastic bin on the bottom shelf.
Maya’s wallet was inside.
Her spare car key.
Two bank envelopes.
A prescription bag.
And her old phone.
Alex turned.
“Why is Maya’s wallet in here?”
Evelyn answered immediately.
“She loses things.”
Maya’s face changed.
“No.”
Alex looked at her.
She swallowed.
“She took it four days ago.”
Evelyn rolled her eyes.
“You left it on the counter.”
“I asked for it back.”
“You were ordering food behind my back.”
Alex opened one bank envelope.
It contained a fraud-alert notice.
His stomach dropped.
“What is this?”
Maya stared at Evelyn.
“I never saw that.”
The second envelope was worse.
It was addressed jointly to Alex and Maya.
Their bank had attempted to verify changes to one of the household accounts.
Alex looked at his mother.
“What changes?”
She said nothing.
May you like
Then Chloe pointed deeper into the cabinet.
“There’s Grandma’s folder too.”
