Chapter 11 - Christmas Morning at Evelyn’s Office
I bought the recorder at a pharmacy three towns over.
The boy at the counter asked if it was for lectures. I told him yes because explaining that I was preparing for betrayal inside my own family felt too heavy for a Tuesday afternoon.
At home, I placed it in my coat pocket before telling Jeffrey I had scheduled a meeting with my attorney, Evelyn Price. I said it calmly while pouring tea, as if the decision had not taken me all night.
Jeffrey’s hand froze over his phone.
“Why would you need Evelyn?”
“To review the trust.”
Lauren’s eyes lifted from the sink.
“The trust is fine,” she said.
“I’d like to hear that from my attorney.”
I walked upstairs afterward but left my coat hanging near the kitchen. From the landing, I heard Jeffrey close the door. Lauren’s voice dropped to a whisper sharp enough to cut through walls.
“She cannot meet that attorney.”
“She already made the appointment,” Jeffrey said.
“Then cancel it.”
“She’ll know.”
Lauren laughed softly. “Jeffrey, everyone already thinks she’s declining. You’ve been telling them for months.”
There was a pause.
Then my son said, “The doctor still won’t sign the competency letter.”
“Find another doctor.”
“And if she changes the trust before then?”
Lauren answered without hesitation.
“Then we get her out of the house before she does.”
I stood on the stairs gripping the railing until my fingers hurt.
May you like
They were not worried about me.
They were preparing to remove me.
