My Fake Sister Cried on Cue, So I Billed Her for the Tissues novel · Chapter 19 of 24

Chapter 19: Item Three

I walked up the center aisle past the staff member with the pink gift bag.

"No, thank you," I said. "I have a bag."

Somewhere behind me, Dad made a noise into his napkin.

The stage steps were carpeted. The spotlight found me at the third one and stayed.

I set the green tote on the lectern and looked out at two hundred faces.

"I was asked to say a few words about my mother," I said. "I'm going to itemize them."

Nobody laughed. Constance smiled at me from the side, patient and sure.

I took out the first item and held it up.

"This is a napkin. At Godfrey's birthday lunch, Constance signed it. It says the Foundation's payment of my mother's bill was a gift, with no conditions."

The woman in the lilac hat stood up in the third row, holding her clipboard.

"I watched her sign it," she said.

"Thank you," I said. "Item two."

I opened the red-tabbed folder and took out page nine.

"This is an invoice from a private investigator. It is dated six years ago in March. It is signed by the same person."

I held the page and the napkin side by side, and the spotlight showed the same blue loops on both.

A murmur started at table nine and spread outward.

"Item three," I said. "Page ten."

I read it off in an ordinary voice, because I had read it so many times it had worn smooth.

"Subject's mother, M. Tanner, is receiving treatment at the county hospital. Prognosis poor. Family has no insurance and is carrying debt."

I turned the page toward the room.

"And in the margin, in her handwriting: Client instructs, no contact."

"That is enough," Constance said.

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