Chapter 11 - My Brother's SecretI couldn't speak for several seconds.
Jesse had sat across from me the night before.
Told me he was scared.
Told me Dad hit him.
Told me he wanted to help.
And now I was staring at evidence suggesting he had forged my authorization too.
I left the diner without saying goodbye.
I drove until the harbor appeared.
Jesse was waiting on Solstice.
He saw my face.
“What happened?”
I threw the paper onto the table.
“Tell me the truth.”
He read it.
Then sat down.
“I can explain.”
“Good.”
“I was desperate.”
“You forged my name.”
“I know.”
“You let Dad use it.”
“Yes.”
“You told me you didn't know.”
“I lied.”
I turned away.
“Why?”
“Because I needed money.”
“For what?”
He didn't answer.
“Why did you need money?”
He looked at me.
“Dad threatened me.”
“That doesn't explain anything.”
“He said if I didn't keep the company alive, he'd expose me.”
“Expose you for what?”
Jesse's face collapsed.
“I owed people.”
“What people?”
“The wrong people.”
I felt sick.
“How much?”
“Two hundred thousand.”
“For what?”
He rubbed his face.
“Online gambling.”
I stared at him.
He started crying.
Not dramatically.
Just quietly.
“Six months before you left, I lost a lot.”
“How much?”
“Eighty thousand.”
I couldn't believe it.
“I borrowed to cover it.”
“From who?”
“A private lender.”
“And Dad found out.”
“Yes.”
“So you forged my signature.”
“He told me to.”
“You could have said no.”
“I thought he'd kill me.”
I stared.
“Did he?”
“No.”
“Did he threaten you?”
“Yes.”
“Did you ever plan to tell me?”
He looked down.
“I tried.”
“When?”
“Last year.”
“What happened?”
“Dad found out.”
I sat across from him.
“Then why come to me now?”
Jesse looked toward the cabin door.
“Because I think he knows I'm done protecting him.”
Silence.
“Where is Mom?”
“At home.”
“Does she know?”
“Yes.”
“About everything?”
He looked at me.
“No.”
Something about the answer bothered me.
I called my mother.
She answered after three rings.
“Hannah.”
“Did Jesse forge my signature?”
Silence.
That was enough.
“Mom.”
“I didn't know.”
“Did you give Dad my documents?”
“I thought he needed them for taxes.”
“You knew about the loans.”
“I knew he was helping Jesse.”
“You knew about Westlake.”
Her breathing changed.
“Who told you that?”
I closed my eyes.
“You did.”
“No.”
“You just did.”
She started crying.
“I was trying to protect you.”
“You protected Dad.”
“I was trying to keep the family together.”
“There was no family left.”
She said nothing.
Then whispered:
“Your father is planning to leave.”
“What?”
“He has money set aside.”
“Where?”
“I don't know.”
“Mom.”
“I swear.”
I stood.
“Then why are you calling me?”
“Because he told me something this morning.”
“What?”
She started crying harder.
“He said the boat is the only thing that can save him.”
My blood turned cold.
“What does that mean?”
“I don't know.”
“Mom.”
She took a breath.
“He said if you refuse, he will make sure the bank believes you committed fraud.”
The line went silent.
I heard nothing except my own breathing.
Then she whispered:
“Hannah, please believe me.”
“What?”
“I was wrong about you.”
For the first time in five years, my mother wasn't asking me to understand them.
May you like
She was asking me to understand her.
And I knew that meant the truth was worse than I had imagined.
