I stayed with my stepmom as she died; her son Silas never visited but still inherited everything and mocked me for not being “blood.”
At her funeral, he was furious — all the accounts were empty.
Her lawyer later told me why: Eleanor had taken out a second mortgage, liquidated her investments, and moved all the money into an irrevocable trust for me. The estate he inherited was bankrupt.
Her letter said, “You are my daughter in every way that matters.”
Silas tried to sue and failed.
I used her gift to open Eleanor’s Nook, the book-and-coffee shop she always wanted.
And every day, I feel her with me.
