Chapter 4
“I finally told the truth.”
And then my mother-in-law said something that made my blood run cold.
“Nicole, please tell me you didn't give them the recordings.”
PART 3: THE SECRET BEHIND THE PERFECT FAMILY
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Diane's words hung in the warm summer air.
The recordings.
Ryan slowly lowered the napkin from his mouth.
“What recordings, Mom?”
Diane looked at Nicole.
Nicole looked at the ground.
Derek's expression was no longer angry.
It was frightened.
And that frightened me more than his earlier behavior.
“Nicole,” I said gently, “you don't have to explain anything you're not comfortable sharing.”
She nodded, but her hands were trembling.
“I know.”
Then she looked at Ryan.
“Your brother has been telling everyone that I spend too much money. That I'm irresponsible. That I can't be trusted with our finances.”
Ryan frowned.
“I've heard him say that.”
“Well, it's not true.”
Nicole reached into her purse again and removed a small notebook.
“For almost two years, I've been documenting what happens in our home. The arguments. The threats. The money that disappears from our accounts.”
Derek stepped forward.
“She's lying.”
I moved slightly between him and Nicole.
“Stay where you are.”
He stopped.
Nicole continued.
“I found out three months ago that Derek had been using our joint savings to cover personal debts.”
Robert frowned.
“What debts?”
Nicole opened the notebook.
“Credit cards. Loans. Money he borrowed from friends.”
Derek shook his head.
“That's private.”
Nicole's voice grew stronger.
“It stopped being private when you emptied the account we created for Tommy's education.”
Diane pressed a hand to her chest.
“Surely there's been a misunderstanding.”
“There hasn't,” Nicole replied.
Robert looked at Derek.
“Is that true?”
Derek didn't answer.
That was answer enough.
Nicole turned another page.
“And there's something else.”
I watched Diane's face.
She suddenly looked ten years older.
“Nicole,” she said softly, “please.”
But Nicole was no longer listening.
“Diane knew.”
Ryan stared at his mother.
“What?”
Nicole's voice cracked.
“She knew about the money. She knew how Derek treated me. I came to her last winter and asked for help.”
Diane began shaking her head.
“That's not fair.”
Nicole's eyes filled.
“You told me that a good wife doesn't embarrass her husband.”
The words struck the yard like thunder.
Ryan looked at his mother as though he were seeing her for the first time.
“Mom?”
Diane covered her mouth.