property expenses.”
A chill ran through me.
Everything finally began fitting together.
Brandon had never been trying to recover $10,500 from my mother.
He had invented the accusation to frighten her.
To shame her.
To make her feel vulnerable and guilty.
And once she felt cornered, he intended to pressure her into surrendering the money she had refused to give him.
Claire looked at me and said exactly what I had begun thinking.
“Brandon never wanted your mother to apologize, Elena. He staged this entire thing because he wanted
