Chapter 4: The Girl They Thought Was Too Young
I couldn't sleep that night.
Every time I closed my eyes, I heard Rebecca's voice.
The girl doesn't know anything.
I lay in bed with the lights off, listening to the house.
At 1:17 a.m., I heard footsteps outside my bedroom.
They stopped.
Then came three quiet knocks.
“Lily?””
It was Emma.
I opened the door.
She stood in her pink pajamas, clutching her stuffed rabbit.
“Can I sleep with you?””
“Of course.””
She climbed into my bed and pulled the blanket up to her chin.
“Is Mommy Rebecca angry?””
I brushed her curls away from her forehead.
“I think she's upset.””
“Because of the papers?””
I nodded.
Emma looked at the door.
“She told me not to tell you something.””
My heart began beating faster.
“What did she tell you?””
Emma hesitated.
“Yesterday, she asked me to draw a picture for Daddy.””
“What kind of picture?””
“She said to draw our family. But she told me not to put you in it.””
I stared at her.
“What?””
Emma nodded.
“She said you were going to live somewhere else soon.””
My throat tightened.
“Did she say where?””
Emma shook her head.
“She said Daddy would understand when everything was finished.””
I hugged her.
“Listen to me. You haven't done anything wrong.””
“Will you leave?””
“No.””
“You promise?””
I kissed the top of her head.
“I promise I'll do everything I can to stay with you.””
She fell asleep eventually.
I didn't.
At seven the next morning, Dad knocked on my door.
“Lily? Can we talk?””
I opened it.
He looked exhausted.
His shirt was wrinkled, and there were dark circles beneath his eyes.
“Martin is coming back at nine. We need to discuss the trust.””
I nodded.
He looked at Emma sleeping beside me.
“Can you come downstairs when she wakes up?””
“Okay.””
Dad hesitated.
Then he said, “I want to apologize for something.””
I waited.
“I should never have allowed Rebecca to make you feel unwelcome in your own home.””
I looked at him.
“Why did you let her?””
He swallowed.
“After your mother died, I was terrified of losing another family. Rebecca made everything seem easier. She handled things I couldn't face. She told me you were struggling because you didn't accept her.””
“I was struggling because Mom died.””
“I know that now.””
“You knew that then.””
He closed his eyes.
I didn't want to hurt him.
But I was tired of protecting his feelings while he ignored mine.
“Dad, every time she took something from me, I told you. Every time she shouted at me, I told you. You always said I was making trouble.””
“I thought I was keeping things together.””
“You were keeping her happy.””
He looked down.
And this time, he didn't tell me to stop.
At nine, Martin arrived with another attorney named Sarah Collins.
Sarah specialized in estate and trust disputes.
She carried a laptop and a thick folder.
After greeting us, she placed a document on the dining table.
“We've identified the attempted change request,” she said.
Dad leaned forward.
“What did they submit?””
“A request to replace Lily's beneficiary contact details and redirect future trust communications to an email address controlled by a third party.””
“Who?””
Sarah opened her laptop.
“An email account registered under the name Rebecca Bennett.””
Dad looked at the staircase.
“Did she have access to Lily's personal information?””
Sarah nodded.
“The request included Lily's date of birth, Social Security information, and a scanned copy of her birth certificate.””
I looked at Dad.
“Rebecca took my documents?””
He shook his head slowly.
“Your birth certificate was in the home office.””
Sarah continued.
“We also discovered a second request. This one attempted to change the mailing address for the trust's annual statements.””
“Where?”” Dad asked.
“To a rented office address in Richmond.””
Martin slid another paper across the table.
“The same address as RB Holdings.””
Dad stood.
“She's been planning this for months.””
Sarah nodded.
“And there's more.””
She opened a second folder.
“Three weeks ago, someone contacted the trust administrator claiming David Bennett had suffered a medical emergency and was temporarily unable to manage his affairs.””
Dad stared at her.
“What?””
“The caller requested emergency authority to manage certain financial decisions.””
“Who made the call?””
Sarah turned the laptop toward him.
“We have the recorded verification information.””
A name appeared.
Jonathan Price.
Dad rubbed his face.
“Rebecca's consultant.””
“Correct.””
I leaned forward.
“Did they believe him?””
“No,” Sarah replied.
“The request was rejected because the documentation was insufficient.””
Dad exhaled.
“Thank God.””
Sarah didn't smile.
“However, the attempt is now part of a larger pattern.””
Martin opened another document.
“David, you need to understand that these actions may have been designed to create the appearance of a legitimate transfer before anyone realized what had happened.””
I stared at the papers.
Everything suddenly seemed connected.
The property addresses.
The false signature.
The trust request.
The mysterious company.
But one thing still bothered me.
“Why would Rebecca need my information if she could just take Dad's company?””
Sarah looked at Martin.
He answered.
“Because your mother anticipated that someone might try to bypass your father's authority by targeting the trust itself.””
He pointed to the original agreement.
“Claire gave you a protected interest in the company. If someone could convince the trustees that your legal identity or beneficiary instructions had changed, they might attempt to redirect the protections she created.””
I felt cold.
“So she was trying to steal my inheritance?””
“Potentially,” Sarah replied.
“But we need more evidence before making that conclusion.””
A noise came from the hallway.
We all turned.
Rebecca stood near the kitchen entrance.
She was holding a cup of coffee.
“How fascinating,” she said.
Nobody answered.
She placed the cup on the counter.
“Have you finished discussing my life?””
Dad stood.
“Rebecca, we need to talk.””
“About what? Your daughter and her little investigation?””
“About the trust.””
Rebecca laughed.
“I'm beginning to think your attorney enjoys making money by frightening people.””
Sarah closed her laptop.
“Mrs. Bennett, did you submit a request to change Lily's beneficiary contact details?””
“No.””
“Did you provide her personal information to Jonathan Price?””
“No.””
“Did you authorize any transfer involving RB Holdings?””
Rebecca looked at Dad.
“Are you going to let this woman question me?””
Dad's voice was quiet.
“Answer her.””
Rebecca's expression hardened.
Then she did something I hadn't expected.
She pulled a folded piece of paper from her handbag and placed it on the table.
“Fine. You want to talk about documents?””
Dad looked down.
It was a medical authorization form.
His name was printed at the top.
And beneath it was a statement claiming that he had appointed Rebecca as his legal representative during periods of medical incapacity.
Dad stared at the paper.
“I've never seen this.””
Rebecca folded her arms.
“Then perhaps you should ask yourself why.””
Sarah immediately picked it up.
“Where did you get this?””
“From David.””
Dad shook his head.
“I didn't give you that.””
Rebecca looked straight at me.
“Maybe your daughter should explain how she got access to your private files.””
I blinked.
“What?””
She smiled.
“Because I found something in Lily's room.””
She reached into her handbag and removed a small silver object.
My mother's locket.
The one Rebecca had taken three years earlier.
I stood so quickly that my chair fell backward.
“That's mine!””
Rebecca held it up.
“Interesting, isn't it?””
Then she placed a folded note beside it.
May you like
And I recognized the handwriting.
Mine.
