It implied that disaster was approaching and only my obedience could prevent it.
But this time I had Grandpa’s letter open on the kitchen table.
I called her back.
She answered immediately.
“Finally.”
“Did you give Derek the spare key?”
She went silent.
“Mom.”
“I gave him access to a family property.”
“My property.”
“Aaron, listen to yourself.
Your grandfather has been dead for barely any time and you’re already talking about mine and yours.”
I stared at the letter.
“You called me before I even knew what I’d inherited and told me Derek needed it more.”
“Because he does.”
At least she didn’t pretend anymore.
“Why?”
“Because he has three children.
Because he has expenses.
Because that money could change their lives.”
“It could change mine too.”
She gave a small, dismissive laugh.
“You don’t have the same responsibilities.”
“That doesn’t make my life disposable.”
“Nobody said disposable.”
“You didn’t have to.”
I told her about Grandpa’s letter.
For the first time since this started, she had no immediate response.
Then she said, “He was always stubborn.”
Not confused.
Not manipulated.
Stubborn.
She knew he had made a choice.
She simply disliked the choice.
“Derek mentioned challenging Grandpa’s competence,” I said.
Her voice changed.
“He was upset.”
“His lawyer sent me a settlement demand before he walked a realtor through my house.”
“Nobody was trying to steal your house.”
I looked at the empty hook where the lockbox had been.
“Then why was there a lockbox on my door?”
She couldn’t answer that without admitting the truth.
So she attacked the consequence instead.
“If you keep pushing this, Aaron, your relationship with your brother may never recover.”
I surprised myself by answering calmly.
“Then he shouldn’t have tried to sell my house.”
I ended the call.
The legal threats continued for several weeks, but they became less impressive once Derek’s attorney received the estate records and learned that the realtor had preserved the messages showing Derek had represented himself as authorized to coordinate a sale.
Mr.
Levin responded formally and requested that Derek cease entering, marketing, or attempting to exercise control over property he did not own.
No lawsuit ever materialized.
The proposed family settlement disappeared too.
Without pressure and ambiguity, there wasn’t much left to negotiate.
Grandpa’s instructions were clear.
The house was mine.
The investment account was mine.
