She was eighty-one.
She lived in a small town outside Minneapolis.
Investigators contacted her.
At first, she denied everything.
Then they showed her Richard’s journals.
She broke.
Carol admitted she had raised Emily as Claire.
She claimed she believed Richard’s story at first.
She said he told her Margaret was dangerous.
But years later, Carol discovered the truth.
She still remained silent.
“Why?”
Margaret asked when Rebecca told her.
Rebecca looked uncomfortable.
“Money.”
Margaret laughed bitterly.
Again.
Money.
Always money.
Richard had paid Carol monthly until Claire turned eighteen.
Then he gave Carol a lump sum.
In exchange, Carol never told Claire the truth.
Claire grew up believing her birth mother had died.
She believed Richard was an uncle who occasionally visited.
She never knew he was her father.
She never knew she had a brother.
She never knew Margaret was alive.
Now the authorities faced another problem.
