Chapter 12 - THE THING BROOKE THOUGHT RACHEL OWED HER
Brooke arrived without her camel coat.
Without gold hoops.
Without the polished certainty Rachel associated with her.
She sat across the conference table beside her attorney.
Elaine sat between the sisters but slightly back.
Rachel noticed.
For once, their mother was not physically positioning herself as referee.
Samantha began with ground rules.
No speeches.
No interruptions.
No discussion of pending legal questions beyond what counsel permitted.
Rachel looked directly at Brooke.
“Why my condo?”
Brooke gave a tired laugh.
“You know why now.”
“I know the business reason.”
“That is the reason.”
“No.”
Rachel leaned forward.
“You could have asked.”
“And you would’ve said no.”
“Probably.”
“Exactly.”
Rachel stared at her.
Brooke continued.
“You’ve said no to me my entire life without actually saying the word.”
Elaine shifted.
Rachel did not.
Brooke looked at her sister.
“You were the responsible one. Dad trusted your judgment. Mom asked your opinion. You got the degree, the job, the condo. Every mistake I made became proof that Brooke needed supervision.”
“You built a career.”
“And every time I mentioned a deal, you asked about risk.”
“Because you asked me for money twice.”
“And I paid you back.”
“Late.”
Brooke laughed sharply.
“There. That.”
Rachel felt the sting because there was truth in it.
Brooke continued.
“When Carter came along, I had one chance to show everybody I could build something bigger. I knew you had surgery. I knew the place would be empty.”
“So you decided it was yours.”
“I decided six weeks wouldn’t hurt you.”
“You forged my signature.”
Brooke looked down.
“I thought once the money came in, you’d be angry and then admit it had worked.”
Rachel stared at her.
That was the heart of it.
Brooke had not expected never to be caught.
She had expected success to retroactively create consent.
Elaine finally spoke.
“And me?”
Brooke’s face tightened.
“What about you?”
“You told me Rachel wanted to stay with me.”
“You wanted her to.”
“So you used that.”
Brooke looked away.
Elaine’s voice cracked.
“I would have helped you if you told me you were afraid of losing the deal.”
“No, you wouldn’t.”
“Maybe not.”
Brooke looked at her mother.
Elaine continued.
“But at least my no would have belonged to me.”
Brooke’s eyes filled.
For the first time, she had no clever answer.
Then Samantha asked the question that ended the emotional portion of the meeting.
“Who appeared before Melissa Crane pretending to be Rachel?”
Brooke’s face went still.
May you like
Her attorney immediately said, “My client will not answer that.”
And Rachel understood the truth still had one missing person.
