Chapter 5 - The Brother's Lies
The first court hearing was scheduled for two weeks later.
In the meantime, I did my homework. I read every document Elena had gathered. I studied the bank statements. I learned the names of Brandon's associates, the locations of his secret accounts, the details of his illegal deals.
I also learned something else.
Brandon had been lying to Jessica too.
Elena found text messages between Brandon and a woman named Carla. They had been dating for two years. Brandon had been promising to leave Jessica. He had been using B&J Holdings to pay for Carla's apartment, her car, her jewelry.
Jessica didn't know.
I sat in Grandpa's study, staring at the evidence. A part of me felt sorry for Jessica. She was a victim too—a victim of Brandon's lies. But another part of me remembered the way she had looked at me at the birthday dinner. The possessive hand on Brandon's arm. The smug smile.
She had known about the stolen college fund. She had known and done nothing.
I decided to tell her.
I called Jessica and asked her to meet me at a coffee shop. She agreed, though she sounded suspicious.
When she arrived, she looked nervous. Her eyes darted around the room. Her hands were shaking.
"Why did you want to see me?" she asked.
"I want to show you something." I pulled out the folder and slid it across the table.
She opened it. Her face went pale.
"What is this?"
"Text messages. Photos. Bank statements. Your husband has been having an affair for two years. He's been using your joint account to pay for it."
Jessica stared at the documents. Her hands trembled.
"This can't be real."
"It's real. I have more evidence if you want to see it."
She looked up at me. There were tears in her eyes. "Why are you telling me this?"
"Because you deserve to know. Because he lied to you. Because he stole from you too."
She was quiet for a long moment. Then she closed the folder and looked at me.
"What do you want me to do?"
"I want you to testify. Against Brandon. Against my parents. I want you to tell the court what you know."
"I don't know anything."
"You know about the shell company. You know about the stolen money. You're a co-signer on the B&J Holdings account."
Jessica's face changed. The tears disappeared. Her eyes hardened.
"You're blackmailing me."
"No. I'm giving you a choice. You can either be a witness or a defendant. It's up to you."
She stared at me. I could see the calculation in her eyes. She was weighing her options. Trying to figure out which path would save her.
"I'll testify," she said finally. "But I want immunity. I want protection."
"I'll talk to my lawyer. But I can't make any promises."
"I'll testify," she repeated. "Just make sure Brandon goes down."
I nodded. "He will."
I stood up and walked out of the coffee shop. I didn't look back.
That night, I called Patricia and told her about Jessica.
"She's willing to flip," I said. "She wants immunity."
Patricia was quiet for a moment. "That's good. We can use her. But we need to be careful. She might be lying. She might be trying to protect herself."
"I know. But she's scared. And scared people do desperate things."
"True. I'll talk to the prosecutor. See if we can offer her a deal."
"Thank you."
I hung up and looked out the window. The sun was setting over the Dallas skyline. The city was beautiful—all lights and shadows.
I thought about my parents. About Brandon. About the family I had lost.
They had chosen money over me. They had chosen loyalty over justice. They had chosen to destroy my future to save Brandon's.
But they had made a mistake.
May you like
They had underestimated me.
And now they were going to pay.
