After everyone had gone, I sat alone at the dining table.
The chicken had grown cold. The flowers Sean had brought me were beginning to droop. The suitcase he had packed remained gone from the hallway.
I looked at the empty chair across from me.
For eighteen years, I had believed that marriage meant standing beside someone through every difficulty. I had defended Sean when others criticized him. I had protected his reputation when his business struggled. I had even hidden a painful financial mistake he had made years earlier because I believed he deserved the chance to rebuild his life.
I had confused loyalty with silence.
And now I understood the difference.
The following morning, I met Patricia at the bank.
We brought the documents, the photographs, and the information Rachel had provided. A fraud investigator reviewed the application and began the process of examining the disputed signature and the transfers.
