I looked up at Mark. “Why didn’t you call me sooner?”
He swallowed. “He asked me to wait until after the funeral. I should’ve called sooner anyway. Then Grace came by asking whether Liam left anything in the safe, and I knew I’d already waited too long.”
My stomach dropped.
Inside the envelope were bank records, photos, and a note.
The note began, “Em, if you’re reading this, then they finally got to me. Please don’t trust Grace.”
The next line was worse.
I stopped breathing for a second.
The next line was worse.
“Grace has been stealing from money meant for the kids, and Ryan knows I found out.”
I read it three times.
There were copies of old estate records from after our mother died. Grace had insisted on handling most of the paperwork because she was “better with forms.” I had let her. According to Liam’s notes, she had been skimming money from my share before the rest was moved into the education fund we set up for Ava and Ben. Liam found it while helping me with taxes.
Then I found the line that made my hands start shaking.
