Patrick snatched his cashmere coat off the back of the dining chair with rough, jerky movements.

“You’re going to deeply regret letting this worthless bum into your life, Cassie,” Patrick spat, glaring at me with hate.

“He sucked the life out of your mother, and he’ll do exactly the same to you.”

“The only thing I regret is not knowing the truth while my mother was still here to see us together,” I answered.

Aunt Linda stepped forward and placed herself between her furious husband and the hallway door.

“Put the family papers down on that table this minute, Patrick,” Linda ordered in a firm voice none of us had heard before.