Chapter 9: The Woman Who Wanted Everything
The room looked like a storm had torn through it.
Drawers were open.
Clothes were scattered.
My mother’s old books were thrown onto the floor.
I stood in the doorway, unable to breathe.
This was the same room Linda wanted so badly.
The room she claimed was just about space.
Comfort.
A bedroom.
But now I saw the truth.
She never wanted the room.
She wanted what was hidden inside it.
My father stood behind me.
“I didn’t know.””
I looked at him.
“You always say that.””
He looked down.
“I know.””
For once, he didn’t defend himself.
I walked inside.
My mother’s old desk was damaged.
The drawers were empty.
Daniel arrived twenty minutes later.
He looked around.
“She was searching.””
“Yes.””
“But for what?””
I opened my mother’s letter again.
The answer was there.
“The second property.””
Daniel nodded.
“Then Linda knows.””
A sound came from downstairs.
We froze.
Someone was inside.
My father whispered:
“Linda?””
We moved carefully.
Then we saw her.
Standing in the hallway.
Holding a folder.
Linda looked different.
Not powerful.
Not confident.
Desperate.
“You.””
My voice was cold.
She looked at me.
“You don’t understand what you’re doing.””
I laughed.
“You broke into my mother’s room.””
“I was looking for something that belongs to me.””
“No.””
Her eyes narrowed.
“It belongs to this family.””
I stepped closer.
“Nothing belongs to you.””
She tightened her grip on the folder.
“You think your mother was innocent?””
I stopped.
“What?””
Linda smiled.
A desperate person’s smile.
The kind people make when they think they have found their last weapon.
“Your mother knew everything.””
Daniel stepped forward.
“Careful.””
But Linda continued.
“She knew your father was struggling.””
She looked at my father.
“She knew he was drowning.””
My father looked away.
“She used money to control him.””
I shook my head.
“No.””
Linda laughed.
“You really think your mother was perfect?””
I stared at her.
“No.””
That surprised her.
“My mother was human.””
I stepped closer.
“She made mistakes.””
Linda’s smile faded.
“But she loved people. That’s the difference.””
The hallway became silent.
Then I noticed the folder.
“What’s inside?””
Linda pulled it closer.
“Insurance records.””
My heart skipped.
“What insurance records?””
She smiled.
“The ones showing your mother knew she was dying.””
I looked at Daniel.
He seemed confused.
“That’s impossible.””
Linda’s eyes lit up.
Finally.
She thought she had control.
“She bought a life insurance policy.””
I waited.
“And?””
Linda hesitated.
That hesitation told me everything.
“And the beneficiary…”
She stopped.
I walked closer.
“Say it.””
Her face changed.
“The beneficiary wasn’t you.””
The silence was deafening.
My father looked shocked.
“Who was it?””
Linda looked at me.
Then smiled.
“It was me.””
For a moment, nobody moved.
Then Daniel took the folder.
He opened it.
His expression changed.
“No.””
Linda looked pleased.
“What?””
Daniel flipped through the pages.
Then looked up.
“This is fake.””
Linda’s smile disappeared.
“What?””
“These documents were altered.””
My father stepped back.
“You forged them?””
Linda’s face went pale.
And suddenly everything made sense.
She wasn’t just desperate.
She was trapped.
Because the woman who spent years manipulating everyone had finally made one mistake.
She left evidence.
Daniel looked at me.
“Emily, we need to call the authorities.””
Linda backed away.
“No.””
I watched her.
The woman who stole my peace.
The woman who destroyed my family.
The woman who thought she could take my mother’s place.
Finally understood something.
She had lost.
But before she ran, she whispered:
“You’ll regret this.””
I looked at her.
“No.””
I thought about my mother.
“I already regretted trusting you.””
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The next morning, the truth would finally come out.
And everyone would learn what Linda had really done.