I was a coward, and I let it happen because I was afraid.

But I am done lying for you.”

The silence in the dining room was absolute.

And into it, Inez stepped forward and placed a legal notice on the table.

“Ms.

Vance,” she said, “formal civil and criminal complaints regarding financial elder abuse, grand larceny, and document forgery will be filed with the Chatham County District Attorney’s office tomorrow morning.

You have twenty-four hours to pack your personal belongings and vacate this property.” Veronica looked around the room, at the accountant, at the neighbor, at the attorney, at the husband who had turned on her, at the two old people she had underestimated so completely, and she understood, at last, that her control had vanished entirely.

Without another word, she turned and stormed upstairs, to the master bedroom that would not be hers for much longer.