I quickly slapped a hand over my mouth to keep from screaming, realizing they were not just hiding a secret family, but actively plotting to make me finance it.

PART 2 — The House That Was Mine

I stayed halfway up the staircase until Kenneth ended his call.

My legs had become strangely unreliable, as though the steps beneath me were moving.

Downstairs, Gertrude said something about Brenda’s rent, and Kenneth answered with the impatient tenderness he usually reserved for people who could give him something.

“I’ll deal with Giselle,” he said.

“Just don’t mention it while she’s around.”