“E-Emily?” he whispered. “You’re supposed to be in Detroit.”
My mother gasped and dropped the quilt back into the water.
“I was, Dad,” I said calmly. “But I came to check on my six-year investment.”
I walked up the porch steps.
Lauren laughed sharply.
“Oh my God, you’re the sister. You need to learn some manners before walking onto my property.”
“My property,” I said.
She frowned.
“Excuse me?”
“Call the sheriff,” I said quietly. “Tell them you’re trespassing on a house that belongs solely to me. Tell them you diverted more than sixty thousand dollars meant for my father’s heart medication and my mother’s care. Tell them you forced an elderly man with heart disease to work outside in this heat.”
Lauren’s confidence flickered.
“You’re insane. Mark owns this house.”
“Mark had access to a family account,” I said. “An account I just closed. This house was purchased in cash through an LLC that belongs to me. You own nothing here. Not the porch. Not the ice in that glass. Not even the phone in your hand.”
At that exact moment, Lauren’s phone buzzed.
