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The call ended.
For several seconds, I looked at my phone.
Downstairs, silverware clinked against the plates. Chloe laughed at something Julian said. They sounded relaxed, almost cheerful, because they believed the old woman upstairs was still terrified in the silence and the daughter they resented was too blinded by guilt to see the truth.
I reopened the recording app and placed the phone on the bathroom counter.
“Mom, I need to ask you a few more questions.”
She pulled the towel tighter around her chest.
“Will they listen to this?”
– Yeah.
“Will Julian go to prison?”
“I don’t know yet.”
Her chin trembled. “He’s still my son.”
The words hit harder than I expected.
Even after the bruises, the ropes, the stolen money, and the threats, a part of her was still trying to protect him.
I knelt before her.
“You can love your child and still tell the truth about what he did.”
He looked towards the closed door.
“It wasn’t always like this.”
“Tell me when it started.”
My mother closed her eyes.
“After your father died, Julian came over every weekend. He fixed the porch railing. He took me to church. Chloe brought pots and pans and told everyone they were worried about me living alone.”
I remembered those months. Julian had called me repeatedly, criticizing my work schedule and insisting that Mom needed someone close by. I had offered to pay for a home assistant, but he rejected the idea.
“Family should take care of family,” he said.
At that moment, the words had made me feel ashamed.
Now I understood that they had been the opening move.
“When did you move?” I asked.
“Last winter. They said their house was being renovated, but then I learned they had lost it. Julian had borrowed against all odds.”
“What happened after that?”
“At first, they were friendly. Then Chloe started taking my email. Julian told me that the bank had changed its rules and that I needed to add him to my accounts.”
“Do you agree?”
“To a checking account. Just so I could pay the electricity bill if I got sick.”
“And what about the other accounts?”
“I never accepted those.”
Continue on the next page.
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