Chapter 6: The Brother My Husband Left Behind
For three days after we discovered my husband’s brother was involved, I barely slept.
Not because I was afraid of Latoya anymore.
Fear had changed.
For forty-three days, fear had been waking up to the sound of a chain.
Now fear had a name.
Richard Carter.
My husband’s older brother.
The man James stopped speaking to twenty years before he died.
The man who never came to the hospital when James was sick.
The man who didn’t attend the funeral.
The man who somehow knew exactly how to reach Latoya.
I sat at my kitchen table in my small apartment, staring at an old photograph.
James was standing beside Richard when they were young.
Two brothers.
Same dark eyes.
Same smile.
Different hearts.
Brian sat across from me.
He hadn’t touched his coffee.
“Dad never talked about him,” he said.
I ran my finger over the picture.
“He did.””
Brian looked up.
“When?””
“After you went to college.””
I remembered that night.
James had sat on our porch for hours, staring into the darkness.
“He said Richard had always believed the world owed him something.””
Brian frowned.
“What happened between them?””
I sighed.
“Your father inherited this house from your grandparents. Richard thought he deserved half.””
“But Dad owned it.””
“Yes.””
Brian looked angry.
“Then why did he come back now?””
I didn’t answer.
Because I already knew.
Money.
People like Richard always came back for one reason.
The next morning, our attorney, Melissa, called us.
“Richard Carter has a history of financial problems,” she said.
Brian stood by the window.
“How bad?””
“Bad enough that he filed bankruptcy twice.””
My stomach tightened.
“And Latoya?””
Melissa was quiet.
“We found messages between them.””
She sent them to Brian.
I watched his face as he read.
The color disappeared.
“What does it say?””
He looked at me.
“She called him ‘Uncle Rick.’”
My chest tightened.
“How long?””
Melissa answered.
“Almost eight months.””
Eight months.
While Latoya cooked dinner.
While she smiled at family gatherings.
While she called me “Mom.””
She had already been planning.
Brian scrolled through the messages.
Then he stopped.
“What?””
He handed me the phone.
The message was from Richard.
> The old woman won’t last forever. Once she’s declared incompetent, we move quickly.
My hands started shaking.
Old woman.
That was what I was to them.
Not Evelyn.
Not Brian’s mother.
Not a person.
A problem.
Melissa’s voice came through the phone.
“There’s something else.””
“What?””
“Richard wasn’t just helping Latoya get your house.””
Brian looked up.
“What else?””
“He was helping her create evidence.””
I frowned.
“Evidence of what?””
Melissa paused.
“Abuse.””
The room went silent.
“What?””
“She planned to claim you were dangerous.””
Brian stared.
“She was going to say Mom was unstable?””
“Yes.””
I remembered every moment.
Every time Latoya pushed me.
Every time she provoked me.
Every time she recorded my reactions.
She wasn’t documenting my behavior.
She was creating a story.
A story where she was the victim.
And I was the villain.
That afternoon, Brian and I went to the police station.
Detective Harris met us there.
He placed a folder on the table.
“We have enough evidence to charge Latoya with multiple crimes.””
I nodded.
Then he looked at Brian.
“But we need to talk about something else.””
Brian leaned forward.
“What?””
“Your wife made a statement.””
My heart stopped.
“She talked?””
Detective Harris nodded.
“She claims she was protecting herself.””
Brian laughed once.
A painful sound.
“Protecting herself?””
“She says your mother attacked her first.””
I looked at him.
“What?””
Detective Harris slid over a photograph.
It was a picture of Latoya’s injured face after Brian came home.
“I knew she would try this,” he said.
Brian looked sick.
“She’s lying.””
“Yes,” Detective Harris said.
“But she’s building a defense.””
I looked at the photograph.
At the bruise.
At the broken tooth.
And for the first time, I understood something.
Latoya had always known how to use pain.
Even her own.
“She wants people to see what happened after,” I whispered.
Detective Harris looked at me.
“Exactly.””
He closed the folder.
“She doesn’t want them to see what happened before.””
That night, I received a call from an unknown number.
I almost didn’t answer.
Then I heard a voice.
A woman’s voice.
“Mrs. Carter?””
“Yes?””
“My name is Tasha.””
I didn’t know anyone named Tasha.
“I used to work with Latoya.””
My heart tightened.
“Another person?””
The woman was silent.
Then she whispered:
“I was the first person she tried to destroy.””
I sat up.
“What happened?””
Her voice trembled.
“Mrs. Carter, you need to know something.””
“What?””
“She didn’t choose you randomly.””
A cold feeling moved through my body.
“What do you mean?””
Tasha took a breath.
“She chose you because she already knew your family.””
I looked toward Brian.
“What are you talking about?””
May you like
The woman answered quietly.
“She knew about your house before she ever met your son.””
