Chapter 10 - MY SISTER CAME WITHOUT HER WEDDING DRESS
Olivia arrived at my loft that evening.
She wore gray sweatpants and Ethan’s oversized college sweatshirt.
Her makeup was gone.
For the first time in years, she looked younger than me.
She stood outside the door holding the garment bag containing her wedding dress.
“Can I come in?”
I hesitated.
Then I opened the door.
She walked toward the living room but did not sit.
“I cannot go back to Mom and Dad’s house.”
“Why?”
“Dad blames me for Ethan leaving.”
“That does not make sense.”
“He says I should have kept Ethan calm.”
“He says the Hale investment failed because I became emotional.”
I almost laughed.
Dad had spent years rewarding Olivia’s emotions when they controlled me.
Now that they cost him something, he called them failure.
“What do you want from me?” I asked.
She looked around my loft.
The simple furniture.
The research books.
The diploma.
“You really did all this alone?”
“Mostly.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I tried.”
“When?”
“Every holiday.”
“You changed the subject.”
“You made jokes about my clothes.”
“You said coding was not a real career.”
Olivia sat slowly.
“I thought Dad was paying for everything.”
“I know.”
“He said you were wasting his money.”
“I know.”
“He said you were still two years from graduating.”
“I finished early.”
She looked toward the diploma.
“Valedictorian.”
“Yes.”
Tears appeared in her eyes.
“I did not even know what you were studying.”
“Computer science and applied mathematics.”
“I told Ethan you studied graphic design.”
“I know.”
“How?”
“He told me.”
She covered her face.
“I sound horrible.”
“You were horrible.”
She looked up.
The honesty hurt her.
But I was finished using softer words to make other people comfortable.
Olivia glanced at the garment bag.
“The designer wants the final payment.”
“How much?”
“Twenty-six thousand.”
I stared at her.
“You wore a dress that cost more than some people earn in a year.”
“I know.”
“Do you?”
She flinched.
“I came because Dad says you control the company now.”
“Temporarily.”
“He froze my salary.”
“The interim order froze all executive payments.”
“I have rent.”
“You also received $108,000 last year.”
“I spent it.”
“That does not create an obligation for the company to continue paying you.”
Her old anger returned.
“You could help me.”
“I could.”
Hope appeared.
I continued.
“But I am not giving you money.”
Her face hardened.
“Then what does help mean to you?”
“A budget.”
“A job search.”
“Selling things you cannot afford.”
“Returning the wedding gifts.”
She stared at the garment bag.
“You want me to sell my dress?”
“I want you to decide what matters more.”
“The dress or your rent.”
She became quiet.
After several minutes, she said, “Ethan’s lawyer asked for the ring back.”
“It belonged to his family.”
“I know.”
“Are you going to return it?”
“Yes.”
The answer surprised me.
Olivia opened her purse.
Inside was the vintage ring.
She placed it on my coffee table.
“I kept thinking he would change his mind.”
“He might.”
She looked at me.
“Do you think he should?”
“No.”
The word made her cry.
I sat across from her.
“Not now.”
“You lied to him.”
“You accepted lies that benefited you.”
“You need to understand why before asking him to trust you again.”
She wiped her face.
“You really hate me.”
“No.”
I looked at my sister honestly.
“I stopped building my life around whether you love me.”
“That is different.”
She stared at the floor.
“Dad wants me to sign a statement saying you stole company information.”
“Will you?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because it is not true.”
The answer was small.
But it was the first time Olivia had chosen truth when lying would benefit her family.
Then she reached into the garment bag.
She removed a manila folder.
“I found this sewn into the dress lining.”
Inside were bank records.
My mother had hidden them there before the accounts were frozen.
The records showed payments to the expired notary.
Transfers from my trust.
And one additional payment.
Fifty thousand dollars to the dean of a private business school.
The note read:
OLIVIA MONROE DEGREE COMPLETION ARRANGEMENT.
May you like
Olivia had never graduated from college.
My parents had purchased the diploma they displayed in their home.
