At my grandmother’s will reading, my mother sat in front of fourteen silent people, watched the lawyer read out a $2.3 million estate that somehow included everyone but me, then turned with a smile so calm it felt practiced and said, “You were always her least favorite.” And for one humiliating second, I thought she had finally found the perfect way to erase me in public.

The room went so silent that I could hear the rhythmic ticking of the clock on the wall and my mother’s face turned a ghostly shade of white as she struggled to breathe. My father stood frozen in shock while Harrison began pacing the room and shouting that it was not possible for a schoolteacher to inherit such a staggering fortune.

“This is clearly a mistake because my mother would never leave that kind of money to someone who does not even understand business,” Douglas muttered while staring at the floor. Marilyn immediately changed her tone and tried to reach for my hand while suggesting that as a family we should find a way to share the wealth that Rosalind had left behind.

“Tessa, honey, you know that we only want what is best for you and we can help you manage this vast amount of money together,” Marilyn whispered with a fake smile. I pulled my hand away and told her that I was simply honoring the specific wishes that my grandmother had put in writing after seven years of careful consideration.