Chapter 7 - THE SIGNATURE THAT WASN’T HERS
Jessica entered without waiting to be invited.
Brittany followed, holding the leather folder beneath her coat.
Daniel remained near the front door.
Jessica looked annoyed when she saw him.
“This is a family matter.”
Daniel folded his arms.
“Then treat your family better.”
Brittany placed several papers on the dining table.
The first page was titled DURABLE POWER OF ATTORNEY.
Martha’s name appeared at the bottom.
The signature looked almost correct.
Almost.
Thomas had always teased Martha because she made the letter H in Higgins with a long lower curve.
The signature on the document had no curve.
The middle initial was also wrong.
Martha Elaine Higgins had become Martha Ellen Higgins.
“That isn’t my signature,” Martha said.
Brittany leaned against the table.
“It was notarized.”
“By you.”
“I’m licensed by the state.”
“Not to witness a signature I never made.”
Jessica stepped closer.
“You signed a lot of paperwork after Dad died. Maybe you forgot.”
Martha’s pain turned cold.
“You’re trying to make me sound confused.”
“You are confused.”
Daniel shifted forward, but Martha raised one hand.
She wanted Jessica to keep talking.
Jessica pointed around the room.
“This house is too much for you. The stairs are dangerous. You forget appointments. You don’t understand online banking.”
“I understood enough to freeze the loan.”
Brittany’s confidence slipped.
Jessica glanced at her.
Then she made the mistake that changed everything.
“Once the house sells, you’ll have professional care. You should be grateful.”
Martha stared at her.
“The house isn’t for sale.”
From the hallway came the sound of something falling.
Everyone turned.
Ava stood near the stairs, still wearing her school backpack.
Her face was pale.
“You were going to sell Grandma’s house?”
Jessica rushed toward her.
“Ava, go wait in the car.”
But Ava backed away.
“No.”
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It was the first time Martha had ever heard her granddaughter defy her mother.
👉 Ava had overheard enough to become frightened—but the messages on her mother’s old tablet would reveal that the plan had started months earlier.
