You plotted to have me declared incompetent, stripped of my autonomy, placed beyond my own control.

Consider yourselves lucky that my response is merely withdrawing financial support and setting clear boundaries.”

Rebecca stared at me as if seeing a stranger.

In many ways, she was.

The compliant, accommodating mother who had enabled her poor choices for decades had vanished the moment Alice whispered her warning.

“What about the things you took?” she asked.