I slept on the living-room sofa.
Nobody slept much.
At six the next morning, I found Mom at the kitchen table wearing one of Dad’s old cardigans. The pearls and bracelet were lying in front of her.
Vanessa had placed them there sometime overnight.
Mom touched the bracelet with one finger.
“She took more than these.”
“What else?”
Mom gave me a weary look. “Your father’s watch. My emerald ring. The silver tea service from Grandma. She said she was putting things somewhere safe.”
“Did she?”
“I stopped asking.”
That sentence hurt more than Vanessa shouting at me.
I made coffee and opened my laptop.
By eight, my attorney, Rachel Kim, joined us by video call. Rachel had handled the original purchase and still had certified copies of my deed and closing documents. She explained that recording the quitclaim deed did not automatically settle ownership. A forged instrument could be challenged, and the title company’s fraud department needed immediate notification.
