Chapter 9 - The Threat That Silenced an Eleven-Year-OldBernice waited until Wren went upstairs.
Then she cornered Mallory in the laundry room.
“You are turning that child against me.”
Mallory continued folding towels.
“I’m listening to her.”
“You are feeding her questions until she says what you want.”
“No.”
“She is eleven.”
“Yes.”
“Children misunderstand adults.”
“They do.”
Bernice seemed surprised by the agreement.
Mallory placed a towel into the basket.
“That’s why I ask what you said, not what she thinks you meant.”
Bernice’s mouth tightened.
Mallory looked at her.
“Did you tell Wren people might question whether I could manage my children?”
“I told her there are consequences when children manufacture chaos.”
“She was afraid she could be taken away.”
“That isn’t what I said.”
“You knew she would hear it that way.”
“No.”
Mallory stared.
“Yes.”
Bernice turned toward the door.
Mallory stopped her.
“Who was the man here yesterday morning?”
Bernice froze.
“What man?”
“The one who delivered paperwork.”
“I don’t remember.”
“You said I’d sign that night.”
Bernice’s eyes narrowed.
“Wren again.”
“Who was he?”
“A courier.”
“For what?”
“Documents.”
“What documents?”
Bernice laughed.
“You have become exhausting.”
“Good.”
Mallory stepped closer.
“Who was he?”
Bernice folded her arms.
“Someone from the buyer’s title company.”
Mallory’s heart pounded.
Finally.
An admission.
“So there is a buyer.”
“There was.”
“Who?”
“It no longer matters.”
“It matters to me.”
“Why? You’ve already decided to destroy the plan.”
Mallory stared at her.
“The plan to sell my house?”
“The plan to prevent financial catastrophe.”
“For Todd.”
“For everyone.”
“Explain ‘everyone.’”
Bernice looked away.
Mallory waited.
Finally her mother said, “Todd owes money.”
“I know.”
“Franklin co-signed part of it.”
Mallory blinked.
“Franklin?”
“His construction company was involved.”
“So Franklin could lose what?”
“His business.”
“Anyone else?”
Bernice hesitated.
“Paula put in retirement money.”
Mallory closed her eyes.
There it was.
A chain of bad decisions.
Each relative pulling the next into risk.
And Bernice in the middle.
“How much does Paula stand to lose?”
“About one hundred twenty thousand.”
“And the sale of my house fixes all of that.”
“It could.”
“How?”
Bernice began counting.
“Pay Todd’s guaranteed debt. Repay Paula. Stabilize Franklin’s company. Cover taxes. Then there would still be money left.”
“For whom?”
Bernice’s expression shifted.
“Family.”
“Meaning?”
“You don’t need every detail.”
Mallory laughed.
“It’s my property.”
“And there is that sentence again.”
“What would I receive?”
Bernice went quiet.
Mallory understood.
“Nothing?”
“You would still have your career.”
“My children would lose their home.”
“You could buy another one.”
“With what?”
“You earn enough.”
Mallory stared.
“So your plan was to liquidate the only major asset Dad left me, use it to cover everyone else’s mistakes, and tell me to start over.”
Bernice raised her voice.
“You have always landed on your feet!”
“And that gives you the right to knock me down?”
Bernice fell silent.
Mallory’s phone rang.
Gregory.
She answered.
“I found the buyer,” he said.
“Who?”
“Lakeshore Residential Partners.”
Mallory had heard the name.
A regional investor that bought high-value homes for redevelopment.
“They have a purchase proposal.”
“Signed?”
“By the buyer.”
“By me?”
“No.”
Mallory exhaled.
“By Bernice?”
“She signed as manager of Barrett Family Holdings.”
“But the LLC doesn’t own the house.”
“Correct.”
“So the contract is worthless.”
“Not necessarily worthless. It may create obligations for Bernice, but it doesn’t convey your property.”
“How fast were they expecting to close?”
“Tuesday.”
Mallory looked at her mother.
Bernice looked back.
“Not Monday?”
“Paperwork Monday. Closing Tuesday.”
Mallory felt sick.
“What price?”
“One point seven six million.”
“And?”
“There’s a penalty if the seller fails to deliver title.”
“How much?”
“Fifty thousand plus costs.”
Mallory stared at Bernice.
“So she may already owe money.”
“Potentially.”
Mallory ended the call.
Her mother read the answer in her face.
“Gregory found it.”
“Yes.”
Bernice’s lips pressed together.
“Then he also told you the buyer can’t take the house without you.”
“Yes.”
“Good.”
Bernice tried to walk away.
Mallory stopped her.
“Why are you acting relieved?”
Bernice’s eyes hardened.
“Because I’m tired of your melodrama.”
“No.”
Mallory studied her.
“You expected this possibility.”
Bernice said nothing.
“Did you have a backup?”
No answer.
Mallory’s suspicion deepened.
“What happens if I refuse?”
“Nothing.”
“Mom.”
“Nothing.”
Then Mallory remembered Wren’s words.
The phone calls.
Richard Vale.
The buyer.
And something else.
“Who is Richard really working for?”
Bernice’s face changed.
Tiny.
But visible.
Mallory’s pulse quickened.
“Not you.”
Bernice looked away.
“Todd?”
Silence.
“Franklin?”
Still nothing.
Mallory’s voice dropped.
“Who?”
Bernice turned toward her.
“You’re so desperate to find a villain.”
“I already found one.”
Bernice flinched.
Mallory continued.
“But I think you’re protecting someone.”
Her mother stepped closer.
“Be careful.”
“Why?”
“Because there are truths in this family you are not ready for.”
Mallory almost laughed.
“You destroyed my marriage and tried to sell my house. I think my threshold has improved.”
Bernice’s face hardened.
Then she said:
“Call Daniel.”
Mallory froze.
“What?”
“Your ex-husband.”
“Why?”
“Ask him who first suggested selling this house.”
Mallory stared at her mother.
“That doesn’t make sense.”
“It will.”
Bernice left the room.
Mallory stood alone for nearly a minute.
Then she opened her contacts.
She had not spoken to Daniel in three months.
She called.
He answered on the fourth ring.
“Mallory?”
“Did you ever talk to my mother about selling Fox Hollow?”
Silence.
Too much silence.
“Daniel.”
He exhaled.
“Yes.”
Mallory’s blood went cold.
“When?”
“Years ago.”
“How many?”
“Eight.”
The year Edward had referenced.
Mallory gripped the washing machine.
“Why?”
Daniel’s voice became quiet.
“Because Bernice told me selling that house was the only way I’d ever get out from under your family.”
Mallory closed her eyes.
“What does that mean?”
Another silence.
May you like
Then Daniel said:
“She offered me money to leave you.”
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