Chapter 2 - A Difficult Mother
For six months, Claire had been telling people Margaret was becoming confused.
At first, the comments sounded harmless.
Mom forgot where she left her keys.
Mom repeated herself at dinner.
Mom should not be driving at night anymore.
Margaret was sixty-eight, recently widowed, and still adjusting to a house that felt too large without her husband, Thomas.
Grief sometimes made her distracted.
But she was not losing her mind.
She managed her investments.
Paid every bill.
Served on the board of a regional science foundation.
And maintained detailed records from thirty-two years working as a forensic scientist for the state.
Claire knew all of that.
She also knew Margaret’s estate was worth several million dollars.
The family home.
A lake property.
Investment accounts.
And shares in a private laboratory company Margaret helped establish before retirement.
Evan began suggesting that the assets were becoming too complicated for her.
He recommended a financial manager.
Then a joint account.
Then a durable power of attorney.
Margaret refused each time.
Claire responded with wounded patience.
“We’re only trying to help.”
Margaret wanted to believe her.
Claire was her only child.
After Thomas died, Margaret feared that suspicion would turn loneliness into bitterness.
So she ignored the way Evan answered questions directed at her.
She ignored Claire searching through the mail.
She ignored the folder marked estate planning that appeared on her breakfast table without her request.
The morning of the restaurant dinner, Evan pushed the power-of-attorney papers toward her again.
“Sign tonight,” he said. “Then we can stop worrying.”
Margaret closed the folder.
“I am not the one who is worried.”
May you like
Evan smiled.
That evening, he ordered her drink.
