My mother placed her hand on the will and said, You won’t get a penny.’ I smiled. Okay, then don’t expect a penny from me either.’ I put down my plate and stood up. A few weeks later, calls started coming from my brother, my mother, even numbers I didn’t recognize, as if I were their backup plan. I answered once and said, ‘Do you all remember that dinner?’

She slid a heavy leather folder across the mahogany table toward Darius.

“Everything goes to Darius and Amber. The house, the cars, the life insurance policy, and the investment accounts. We must protect the legacy for your son—my grandson.”

She turned her cold gaze on me.

“Tasha, you are a single woman with no responsibilities and frankly no status in our community. You can fend for yourself.”

Amber laughed, a sound that grated on my nerves like sandpaper.

“Oh, do not look so tragic, Tasha. We are not heartless.” She leaned in as if she were doing me a favor. “Darius and I were actually talking about letting you come over on weekends to help with the cleaning. We had to fire the maid to cut costs. And since you are always looking for extra cash with those little freelance gigs of yours, we figured it would be a win-win.”

Continue reading…