“He can do that?”
“He can try. That doesn't mean he'll succeed.”
I looked toward Thomas's photograph above the fireplace.
“He says Thomas wasn't the man I thought he was.”
Evelyn was silent.
I swallowed.
“Did you know Thomas had a son?”
“Yes.”
The word hurt.
Another person who knew.
Another person who had looked me in the eye while keeping my husband's secret.
I closed my eyes.
“Of course you did.”
“Margaret…”
“Please don't tell me Thomas thought it was best.”
She sighed.
“He believed he was protecting you. But I told him more than once that he needed to tell you himself.”
Tears filled my eyes.
“Why didn't he?”
“Only Thomas could fully answer that.”
I looked toward the box on the table.
The photographs.
The twenty-eight-million-dollar trust.
And the life I suddenly couldn't recognize.
“I need my own lawyer,” I said.
Evelyn's voice softened.
“I think that would be wise. I'll give you the names of several independent attorneys.”
