“Who is this?”
Dad said something sharply in the background.
The stranger continued.
“My name is Martin Hale. I represented your grandmother, Evelyn Bennett.”
My breath caught.
Grandma Evelyn had died when I was seventeen.
She was the only person in my childhood who never treated Madison and me like competitors.
She taught me to bake.
Helped me with college applications.
Called me every Sunday.
Losing her had devastated me.
Dad interrupted.
“This is not the time.”
Mr. Hale ignored him.
“Actually, Robert, it is precisely the time.”
My fingers
