“She came into this family with nothing,” she continued. “Daniel gave her a home, a name, and a life. She repaid him with secrets, debt, and humiliation.”
My brother-in-law, Grant, stood behind her with his arms crossed. He had asked about Daniel’s life insurance before the funeral home had even collected Daniel’s body from the hospital.
Now he stared at me as though I were trespassing at my own husband’s funeral.
Vivian stepped closer. “You should be grateful we’re allowing you to sit with the family.”
A few relatives heard her. None defended me.
I didn’t cry. That seemed to irritate her more than tears would have. She wanted me shattered. She wanted me begging the family to believe I had not forged Daniel’s signature on a loan, hidden hundreds of thousands of dollars, or destroyed the business his father had built.
Those were the rumors she had spread during the six days between Daniel’s accident and his funeral.
