Chapter 5 - Grandma did leave us something
My grandmother Ruth Carter was the only person in my childhood who never compared Lily and me.
She taught me to drive.
Sent handwritten birthday cards from two states away.
Called after every promotion even when she didn't understand exactly what I did.
When she died, Dad said the nursing home and hospital had consumed almost everything.
I believed him.
The trust told another story.
Ruth had owned mineral rights tied to land in eastern Washington.
She sold most of them late in life.
The proceeds funded the trust.
$2.4 million.
Half intended for Lily.
Half for me.
But distributions were restricted until age thirty.
I was thirty-four.
Lily was twenty-eight.
I should already have received mine.
“Where is it?” I asked Rachel.
“Some of the trust assets appear to have been rolled into Carter Holdings.”
“Can trustees do that?”
“Potentially, if permitted and for beneficiaries.”
Were they?
That became the question.
Property values had risen.
The nine houses alone were worth more than $5 million.
If everything had been properly managed, maybe the trust had grown.
Then why hide it?
Why use my personal identity?
Why steal another $100,000 for Hawaii?
Rachel found a scheduled event in public records.
Three days from now.
Carter Holdings planned to refinance six properties.
New debt:
$3.8 million.
That explained urgency.
If American Express fraud triggered broader scrutiny, lenders might reconsider.
The vacation wasn't necessarily the scheme.
It was reckless behavior at the worst possible moment.
Then Lily called.
This time she was crying.
Not angry.
“Mom and Dad are fighting.”
“About what?”
“I don't know. Dad says she ruined everything by using your card.”
Interesting.
“Where are you?”
“Hotel.”
“Are Mom and Dad still there?”
“Dad flew home.”
“What about Mom?”
“She disappeared this morning.”
My stomach tightened.
“Disappeared?”
“Her suitcase is gone.”
Then Lily said:
“Emily, there's something weird.”
“What?”
“Mom wasn't supposed to come to Hawaii.”
“What do you mean?”
“Dad booked the trip for me and someone else.”
“Who?”
“She won't tell me.”
“Who was the second ticket issued to?”
Lily checked the itinerary.
Then became silent.
“Lily?”
“The passenger name is Laura Bennett.”
I knew that name.
Laura Bennett had been Grandma Ruth's estate attorney.
According to Dad, she died before the trust could be settled.
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Apparently she was alive enough to have a first-class ticket to Honolulu.
And my mother had taken her seat.
