{"id":6165,"date":"2026-08-21T19:46:33","date_gmt":"2026-08-21T19:46:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/awestories24.press\/?p=6165"},"modified":"2026-08-21T19:46:33","modified_gmt":"2026-08-21T19:46:33","slug":"part-2-92","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/awestories24.press\/?p=6165","title":{"rendered":"Part 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

But listening to Lauren, I felt no uncertainty.<\/strong><\/h1>\n

I knew exactly what kind of person I was dealing with.<\/p>\n

Still, I didn\u2019t want to confront her over the phone.<\/p>\n

I wanted her sitting in front of me.<\/p>\n

And I wanted Kyle there too.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know what?\u201d I said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCome to dinner tomorrow night.\u201d<\/p>\n

She sounded surprised.<\/p>\n

\u201cReally?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFamily dinner. Seven o\u2019clock.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her tone instantly brightened.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWear something nice.\u201d<\/p>\n

She agreed before she had time to wonder why I had suddenly become so friendly.<\/p>\n

After we hung up, I stared at Lauren\u2019s name on my phone.<\/p>\n

Then another thought hit me.<\/p>\n

Five thousand dollars.<\/p>\n

That exact amount had come up before.<\/p>\n

Six months earlier.<\/p>\n

With Ethan.<\/p>\n

My boyfriend.<\/p>\n

And his ex-fianc\u00e9e.<\/p>\n

Suddenly, I remembered something I had tried very hard to forget.<\/p>\n

A photograph.<\/p>\n

Part of a woman\u2019s face.<\/p>\n

And a small mole beneath one eye.<\/p>\n

Lauren had a mole in almost exactly the same place.<\/p>\n

No.<\/p>\n

That was ridiculous.<\/p>\n

It had to be a coincidence.<\/p>\n

At least, that was what I wanted to believe.<\/p>\n

But this time, I wasn\u2019t willing to ignore the feeling.<\/p>\n

To explain why, I have to go back six months.<\/p>\n

I met Ethan in the parking lot of a hardware store.<\/p>\n

I was trying to load a large box fan into my trunk when a man behind me started honking aggressively and yelling for me to hurry up.<\/p>\n

My hands began shaking.<\/p>\n

Before I could respond, a calm voice came from beside me.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s almost finished. Give her a second.\u201d<\/p>\n

The man standing nearby didn\u2019t yell back.<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t threaten anyone.<\/p>\n

He simply remained there until the impatient driver finally gave up and pulled away.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou didn\u2019t have to do that,\u201d I told him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n

That was Ethan.<\/p>\n

We started talking.<\/p>\n

When he asked for my number, I gave it to him before I could overthink the decision.<\/p>\n

After my divorce, that was unusual for me.<\/p>\n

I questioned everything.<\/p>\n

Every decision.<\/p>\n

Every person.<\/p>\n

But something about Ethan felt safe.<\/p>\n

We started seeing each other once or twice a week.<\/p>\n

Mostly quiet dinners.<\/p>\n

Sometimes evenings at his apartment.<\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t tell my family immediately.<\/p>\n

My divorce had become public entertainment for everyone around me.<\/p>\n

Too many opinions.<\/p>\n

Too many questions.<\/p>\n

Too many relatives choosing sides.<\/p>\n

This time, I wanted my relationship to belong only to me for a little while.<\/p>\n

Ethan became my private happiness.<\/p>\n

Still, every so often, the old doubt returned.<\/p>\n

How well did I really know him?<\/p>\n

One evening, while we were having wine in his kitchen, I asked him to tell me something personal.<\/p>\n

He became quiet.<\/p>\n

Then he said,<\/p>\n

\u201cI was engaged once.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n

His expression hardened.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was terrible.\u201d<\/p>\n

He hesitated.<\/p>\n

\u201cAbout two months before the wedding, she asked me for five thousand dollars.\u201d<\/p>\n

My attention sharpened.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe said she owed an old debt. Then the explanation kept changing.\u201d<\/p>\n

He shook his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t like talking about her.\u201d<\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t push.<\/p>\n

Later that night, Ethan went to shower.<\/p>\n

While I was waiting, I noticed an old manila folder on his desk.<\/p>\n

A photograph was sticking halfway out.<\/p>\n

I could see only part of a woman\u2019s face.<\/p>\n

Dark hair.<\/p>\n

One eye.<\/p>\n

And a small mole just beneath it.<\/p>\n

For a moment, I nearly pulled the photograph out.<\/p>\n

Then I stopped myself.<\/p>\n

My ex-husband had spent years calling me paranoid whenever I noticed something suspicious.<\/p>\n

I had promised myself I wouldn\u2019t become someone who searched through another person\u2019s belongings just because fear told me to.<\/p>\n

So I left it alone.<\/p>\n

Until that Saturday in my mother\u2019s kitchen.<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Five thousand dollars.<\/p>\n

Lauren.<\/p>\n

That mole.<\/p>\n

Suddenly, ignoring the connection felt more foolish than investigating it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI need to go somewhere,\u201d I told Mom.<\/p>\n

Half an hour later, Ethan opened his apartment door wearing an old T-shirt.<\/p>\n

\u201cRachel?\u201d<\/p>\n

He looked sleepy.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you call?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs everything okay?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI need to see that photograph.\u201d<\/p>\n

His expression changed.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat photograph?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe woman in the folder.\u201d<\/p>\n

He stared at me.<\/p>\n

\u201cYour ex.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause I think I know her.\u201d<\/p>\n

For several seconds, Ethan said nothing.<\/p>\n

Then he went to the closet, retrieved the folder, and sat beside me.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re sure you want to see it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n

He opened the folder.<\/p>\n

Then he placed the picture face-up on the coffee table.<\/p>\n

My stomach dropped.<\/p>\n

The woman was younger.<\/p>\n

Her hairstyle was different.<\/p>\n

Her face looked softer.<\/p>\n

But there was no mistake.<\/p>\n

Same eyes.<\/p>\n

Same smile.<\/p>\n

Same mole.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s Lauren.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ethan looked at me sharply.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy brother\u2019s wife.\u201d<\/p>\n

He stared at the picture again.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo. Her name was Laura when I knew her.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have got to be kidding me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Neither of us spoke for several seconds.<\/p>\n

Then I explained why Lauren\u2019s name had come up.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy mom\u2019s refrigerator died today.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ethan looked confused.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat does that have to do with Lauren?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMom couldn\u2019t replace it because she gave Lauren all her emergency savings.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFive thousand dollars.\u201d<\/p>\n

His face changed immediately.<\/p>\n

\u201cRachel\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n

I pointed at the photograph.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s why I came here.\u201d<\/p>\n

I asked him what had happened when Lauren\u2014Laura\u2014asked him for the same amount.<\/p>\n

\u201cDid you give her the money?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTwo thousand.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy not the full five?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI told her I wanted to see paperwork before giving her anything else.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe story changed.\u201d<\/p>\n

He leaned back.<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst it was an old debt. Then it was something involving her mother. Every time I asked for proof, there was another excuse.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat happened when you refused the rest?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe disappeared by the weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then I remembered something Mom had said.<\/p>\n

She hadn\u2019t actually transferred five thousand dollars directly to Lauren.<\/p>\n

Lauren had provided payment information.<\/p>\n

I pulled up Mom\u2019s banking records.<\/p>\n

\u201cTwelve hundred went to the body shop,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n

Ethan frowned.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd the other thirty-eight hundred?\u201d<\/p>\n

I scrolled down.<\/p>\n

A name appeared.<\/p>\n

M. Alvarez.<\/p>\n

Ethan leaned closer.<\/p>\n

His face immediately tightened.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know that name?\u201d<\/p>\n

Without answering, he grabbed his laptop.<\/p>\n

A few moments later, he pulled up old records.<\/p>\n

Then he turned the screen toward me.<\/p>\n

There it was.<\/p>\n

M. Alvarez.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know her?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTwo years ago, this woman sent me a payment request for two thousand dollars. She said Laura owed her money and asked whether I could help cover it.\u201d<\/p>\n

I stared at him.<\/p>\n

Everything suddenly clicked.<\/p>\n

Ethan opened more files.<\/p>\n

Old screenshots.<\/p>\n

Messages.<\/p>\n

Different names.<\/p>\n

Similar requests.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow many people are there?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEnough.\u201d<\/p>\n

I looked again at Mom\u2019s payment.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe thought she was paying Lauren\u2019s car repairs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ethan nodded.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut Lauren gave your mother payment information belonging to someone she already owed.\u201d<\/p>\n

I felt cold.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s moving the money around.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe borrows from one person, then gets money from someone new to pay the previous debt.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ethan gave a slow nod.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt certainly looks like it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Six months earlier, I would probably have found some reason to convince myself we were misunderstanding everything.<\/p>\n

Not anymore.<\/p>\n

\u201cI need to call Kyle.\u201d<\/p>\n

I reached for my phone.<\/p>\n

Then stopped.<\/p>\n

Ethan looked at me.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy not?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause Lauren already agreed to come to dinner tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

I looked at all the records spread across the table.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I warn Kyle tonight, she gets almost twenty-four hours to invent an explanation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTomorrow night, she can explain everything with the evidence sitting directly in front of her.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ethan studied me.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou still want me there?\u201d<\/p>\n

I glanced down at the photograph.<\/p>\n

\u201cMore than ever.\u201d<\/p>\n

Before leaving, I printed copies of Mom\u2019s transfers.<\/p>\n

Ethan added his old messages and payment records.<\/p>\n

By the time I closed the folder, Lauren\u2019s past and my mother\u2019s missing money were sitting side by side.<\/p>\n

The following evening, Lauren arrived at seven.<\/p>\n

She looked perfectly comfortable.<\/p>\n

She sat beside Kyle, smiling as though nothing in the world could touch her.<\/p>\n

I brought coffee to the table.<\/p>\n

Then the doorbell rang.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll get it.\u201d<\/p>\n

I opened the door.<\/p>\n

Ethan stood outside carrying the folder.<\/p>\n

The moment Lauren saw him, every bit of color disappeared from her face.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is he doing here?\u201d<\/p>\n

Kyle frowned.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know him?\u201d<\/p>\n

Lauren ignored the question.<\/p>\n

\u201cWho invited him?\u201d<\/p>\n

She looked directly at me.<\/p>\n

Then panic flashed across her face.<\/p>\n

\u201cGet him out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nobody moved.<\/p>\n

\u201cI said get him out! He has no right to be here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ethan calmly walked to the table and placed the folder in front of Kyle.<\/p>\n

Kyle opened it.<\/p>\n

First came Mom\u2019s banking records.<\/p>\n

Then Ethan\u2019s screenshots.<\/p>\n

Finally, the photograph.<\/p>\n

The one labeled Laura.<\/p>\n

Kyle slowly looked at his wife.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is this?\u201d<\/p>\n

I answered before Lauren could.<\/p>\n

\u201cAsk her where Mom\u2019s five thousand dollars actually went.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lauren immediately recovered part of her composure.<\/p>\n

\u201cMarisol handled some of the repair work. Rachel doesn\u2019t understand what she\u2019s looking at.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kyle looked at her.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen explain it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s nothing to explain.\u201d<\/p>\n

She pointed toward me.<\/p>\n

\u201cRachel has always hated me, and now she conveniently appears with my ex-boyfriend?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFianc\u00e9,\u201d Ethan said quietly.<\/p>\n

Lauren\u2019s eyes snapped toward him.<\/p>\n

I pulled out another screenshot.<\/p>\n

\u201cMarisol asked Ethan for money two years before your accident,\u201d I said. \u201cShe told him you already owed her.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lauren\u2019s expression flickered.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo what? I owed her money.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mom looked stunned.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou told me that payment was for your vehicle.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lauren didn\u2019t answer.<\/p>\n

I continued.<\/p>\n

\u201cTwelve hundred dollars went to the actual body shop. Thirty-eight hundred went to Marisol.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kyle stared at Lauren.<\/p>\n

\u201cIs that true?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s complicated.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d I said. \u201cIt really isn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mom\u2019s voice shook.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou told me it was all for the car.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lauren looked around the table.<\/p>\n

Then she attacked the only thing she had left.<\/p>\n

\u201cRachel arranged this.\u201d<\/p>\n

She pointed toward Ethan.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re dating. How do any of you know they didn\u2019t create all of this together?\u201d<\/strong><\/h1>\n

I nearly laughed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t even know Ethan\u2019s ex was named Laura until yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ethan pushed the old photograph toward Kyle.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd I had no idea Rachel\u2019s sister-in-law was the woman I almost married.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kyle lifted the picture.<\/p>\n

\u201cLaura?\u201d<\/p>\n

Lauren went silent.<\/p>\n

Kyle\u2019s expression changed.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou told me you paid for the SUV repairs yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

She looked away.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou never told me Mom gave you money.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still nothing.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou never told me about Ethan.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lauren gripped the edge of the table.<\/p>\n

Finally, she said,<\/p>\n

\u201cYou want the truth?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Kyle replied.<\/p>\n

She took a breath.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy mother was sick for two years before she died.\u201d<\/p>\n

The room became quiet.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen she passed away, there were forty-one thousand dollars in medical bills.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mom\u2019s expression softened.<\/p>\n

Lauren continued.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was twenty-four. I didn\u2019t know what to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

She glanced toward Ethan.<\/p>\n

\u201cI borrowed money from him first.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ethan didn\u2019t respond.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen when he stopped giving me money, I borrowed from someone else.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her voice became quieter.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen someone else.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mom looked heartbroken.<\/p>\n

\u201cLauren, why didn\u2019t you tell us?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAt first, every dollar really was for my mother.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lauren swallowed.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut after she died, the debt didn\u2019t disappear.\u201d<\/p>\n

She looked down at her hands.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

\u201cI started lying because I was desperate.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nobody spoke.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd eventually I realized the lies worked.\u201d<\/p>\n

That sentence changed the mood completely.<\/p>\n

Mom slowly folded her napkin.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you had simply asked me for help, I would have helped you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lauren\u2019s eyes filled with tears.<\/p>\n

But I wasn\u2019t willing to let the explanation erase what she had done.<\/p>\n

\u201cYour mother might explain how this began,\u201d I said. \u201cShe doesn\u2019t explain why you lied to mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kyle stood.<\/p>\n

He left the room briefly.<\/p>\n

When he returned, he was holding his checkbook.<\/p>\n

He wrote something, tore out the check, and placed it in front of Mom.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery dollar goes back tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lauren stared at him.<\/p>\n

\u201cKyle\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t look at her.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd tomorrow, you\u2019re giving me a complete list.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA list of what?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery debt.\u201d<\/p>\n

His voice was calm.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery loan. Every credit card. Every person you borrowed from. Every lie you used to get money.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lauren\u2019s face went pale.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat are you saying?\u201d<\/p>\n

Kyle picked up his keys.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m saying I\u2019m not going home with you tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cKyle.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you never ask my mother for another cent.\u201d<\/p>\n

For the first time since I had known Lauren, she had absolutely nothing to say.<\/p>\n

Kyle slept on Mom\u2019s couch that night.<\/p>\n

By morning, Lauren had sent him a list of debts he never knew existed.<\/p>\n

Kyle never told me exactly what happened to their marriage afterward.<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t need to.<\/p>\n

The next morning, I drove Mom to an appliance store.<\/p>\n

She chose a simple white refrigerator with a bottom freezer.<\/p>\n

And she paid for it using the money Kyle\u2019s check had restored to her emergency savings.<\/p>\n

Six months earlier, I had stood in Ethan\u2019s apartment staring at the edge of a photograph and convinced myself not to investigate because I was terrified of being wrong.<\/p>\n

This time, when something didn\u2019t make sense, I didn\u2019t silence myself.<\/p>\n

I looked closer.<\/p>\n

I asked questions.<\/p>\n

And most importantly, I refused to let anyone convince me that what I was seeing wasn\u2019t real.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

But listening to Lauren, I felt no uncertainty. I knew exactly what kind of person I was dealing with. Still, I didn\u2019t want to confront her over the phone. 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