I almost felt sick.
I sat down.
“You know, Mother…”
“Yes?”
“I’ve been thinking.”
“About what?”
“Maybe I should transfer the rest of the settlement sooner.”
Both of them went silent.
Godfrey nearly dropped his glass.
“You can?”
“I might be able to.”
Selina leaned forward.
“That would be wonderful.”
“There’s only one problem.”
“What?”
“I need to know who has been moving money from my account.”
Her face changed.
Only for a second.
But I saw it.
“Nobody has.”
“I think someone has.”
“You have proof?”
“Not yet.”
Godfrey stood.
“Damian, if you don’t trust us, just say so.”
“I trust you.”
He smiled.
“Good.”
“That’s why I want you to help me.”
“How?”
I looked at him.
“I want you to make another transfer.”
His smile disappeared.
“Where?”
I slid a piece of paper across the table.
He read the account number.
His face went white.
Selina grabbed the paper.
The moment she saw it, she stood so quickly that her chair fell backward.
“No.”
I looked at her.
“What?”
“Don’t send money there.”
“Why?”
She couldn’t answer.
Godfrey looked at her.
“Mom…”
She shook her head.
“Damian, don’t.”
“Why?”
“Because…”
She stopped.
I waited.
Finally, she whispered,
“That account isn’t safe.”
I smiled.
“How would you know?”
Silence.
And there it was.
The confession hiding inside the fear.
They knew the account.
They knew exactly where it led.
And they were terrified of me sending money there.
I stood.
“Who is Elias Kane?”
Selina began crying.
Godfrey stepped backward.
“Mom?”
I repeated the question.
“Who is Elias Kane?”
My mother covered her face.
Then she said something I never expected.
“He was your father.”
I froze.
“What?”
“Your father wasn’t the man you grew up believing he was.”
The room spun.
She continued through her tears.
“Your father died when you were young.”
“I know.”
“No.”
She shook her head.
“You know the story I told you.”
My hands went cold.
“Elias was your biological father.”
I couldn’t speak.
“Your mother met him before she married your father,” she said.
“Why did you lie?”
“Because he left.”
“Why?”
“Because he already had another family.”
I stared at her.
“And Maribel?”
“Your half-sister.”
Everything went silent.
The mysterious photograph.
The secret account.
The missing money.
The years of lies.
It all connected.
But there was still one question.
“Why did you send my money to them?”
My mother looked at the floor.
“Because Elias left them with nothing.”
I shook my head.
“That doesn’t give you the right to steal from me.”
“I wasn’t stealing.”
“You used money I sent for my wife.”
She cried harder.
“I thought you would forgive me.”
“You let my wife starve.”
She said nothing.
“You took her jewelry.”
Nothing.
“You shaved her head.”
Godfrey suddenly spoke.
“That was Mom’s idea.”
Selina turned toward him.
“Godfrey!”
He panicked.
“You told me she was embarrassing the family!”
I looked at him.
“So you knew?”
He looked away.
“Yes.”
“Did you know she was sick?”
“Yes.”
“Did you know she needed treatment?”
“Yes.”
“And you still took my money?”
