Chapter 4 - The Mask Rips OffEvelyn’s eyes flicked to the Manila envelope in my hand. For a fraction of a second, her composure faltered. Her eyes widened slightly, her fingers twitching against her gloves.

"What is that?" she demanded, attempting to maintain her condescending tone.

"This is your prison sentence," I replied smoothly, opening the envelope and pulling out the forged power-of-attorney form and the petition for guardianship. "I found your little creative writing project in my office cabinet."

Evelyn's face went completely pale. The elegant facade she had worn for decades didn't just crack—it shattered.

"You went through my things?!" she shrieked, her voice echoing off the foyer's high ceiling.

"In my house? In my office? In my locked filing cabinet?" I took a step toward her. "You forged my signature on a power-of-attorney document to access my life savings. You staged fake crime scenes in my home to frame my pregnant wife as a mentally ill abuser. That isn't jealousy, Mother. That is felony fraud, identity theft, and conspiracy."

Evelyn took a hasty step back, her heel catching on the edge of her suitcase. "I did it for you! She’s ruining your life! You were a successful, brilliant man before you met her, and now you’re living for her beck and call! She’s a nobody! Her family has no money, no status—"

"Her family has love," I cut her off sharply, my voice dropping an octave. "Her family has decency. Things you have never possessed for a single second of your life."

"Give me those papers!" Evelyn suddenly lunged forward, her manicured nails reaching out like claws to snatch the Manila envelope from my hands.

I didn't even flinch. I caught her forearm in mid-air, holding her firmly in place.

"If you take one more step toward me, or if you ever step foot on this property again," I whispered, staring directly into her wide, frantic eyes, "I will hand these original forged documents straight to Detective Miller at the precinct. He’s already reviewing the bank's fraud report from Tuesday."

That was a bluff—I hadn't called the police yet—but it struck her like a lightning bolt. Evelyn knew the law. She knew that financial forgery and false report filings carried real jail time.

She froze, her chest heaving, her eyes darting around the foyer as if looking for an escape route.

"You wouldn't," she breathed, her voice finally showing real, unadulterated fear. "You wouldn't send your own mother to prison."

"Try me," I said. "Pick up your bags."

At that moment, a soft sound came from the top of the stairs.

Anna was standing at the wooden railing, wrapped in my heavy bathrobe, holding onto the banister with both hands. She looked exhausted, her face pale, but her eyes were steady as she looked down at Evelyn.

Evelyn looked up at Anna. The hatred in my mother’s eyes was pure poison.

"You think you’ve won, you little bitch?" Evelyn spat, her voice raspy with venom. "He’ll realize what you are eventually! You’ll never be part of this family!"

Anna didn't shrink away this time. She took a deep breath, stood up tall, and looked down at the woman who had terrorized her for four months.

"I am his family," Anna said, her voice clear, strong, and unwavering. "And you are just a stranger who isn't allowed here anymore."

Evelyn looked as if she had been slapped. She looked at me, hoping to see a flicker of doubt, a hesitation, a sign that her long-held psychological grip over me was still intact.

She saw nothing but an impenetrable wall.

Without another word, Evelyn grabbed the handles of her two leather suitcases, yanked them toward the front door, unlocked the latch, and stormed out into the cold morning air. She slammed the door behind her so hard the decorative brass knocker rattled against the wood.

I turned around, walked up the stairs, and pulled Anna into my arms.

"She's gone," I whispered against her hair, feeling her body relax against mine. "She's really gone."

"David..." Anna whispered suddenly, her hand clutching my arm with a sudden, violent grip.

I pulled back to look at her. Her face was contorted in pain, a sharp gasp escaping her lips.

"Anna? What is it?"

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