“Family matters stay inside the family,” he declared.

“A mother is still a mother, no matter her mistakes.”

Julian quietly set five criminal fraud complaints from victimized families on the coffee table.

I pulled out my speaker and played Mark’s recorded call.

His voice filled the room — mocking Eleanor, calling Chloe a useless fool, laying out exactly how he’d used my mother’s insecurity to isolate Maya and reach my money.

My mother sat frozen on the sofa.