Free Legacy: It's Never Black and White in Love and Business by E.W. Brooks Page A

toyed with. 
    ***
    Matthew hid the Sunday morning paper. He had no intentions of letting Tesha’s surprise wedding and engagement party hurt Edwina. How could someone be so thoughtless , he wondered. He threw the paper in the garbage bin as he heard his garage door open. 
    “Hey, Babe. Your hair looks great!” Matthew complimented his wife-to-be. 
    “Thanks, Sugar Pie. How was your morning?” 
    “A little lonely without you to snuggle with, but I’m glad you’re back. Now we can sweat out that perm.” Matthew joked.
    “Oh, no hell no, we won’t,” Edwina laughed, “Guess what I found out today?” she asked, the mood turning somber. 
    “What’s up, Babe?” Matthew asked with concern, as he watched the love of his life’s countenance change. 
    “I was in the salon today and someone had the lifestyle section open. It seems that my mother is marrying some guy with a gold tooth named James.” 
    “Oh, so you know about that?” Matthew asked, pulling the paper from the trash.
    “Yeah, I’m just glad that she can finally get a little piece of happiness. She was far from a perfect Mom, but I know she had to play the hand she was dealt,” Edwina responded. 
    “Do you wonder how she’s paying for all of this?” Matthew asked. 
    “Nah, she’s had it so hard for so long. It’s probably that man,” Edwina responded. 
    Matthew sat, afraid to move, but knowing he had to be honest with the love of his life. 
    “Hey, I accidentally opened your bank statement today. I thought it was mine, because I know you bank with the Credit Union and this statement was from Bank of America. Did you know about this?” Matthew asked, handing his wife evidence of a small fortune. 
    Edwina dropped the statement when she saw all of the zeros in a bank account with her name that listed Tesha Edwards as trustee. 
    “What is this?” Edwina asked with a confused look on her face. 
    “From the look of that statement, it seems you are one rich lady,” Matthew smiled. 
    “Yeah, I guess, but I don’t know where it came from,” Edwina answered, “I can’t spend money that isn’t mine.” 
    “Let’s call the bank,” Matthew said, “with this kind of money you should have a personal banker and a financial advisor.” 
    Edwina slowly dialed the number on the statement. After verifying her address and identity, a personal friend of the Marlowe family advised Edwina that a man named Cannon Keen made a $10,000 deposit in that account every month for her lifetime. 
    “A lifetime?” Lena asked. “Math was never my thing, but I should have more than 1.5 million left.” 
    “Most recently, there was a large cash withdrawal and a check for $100,000 to Mickens Art and Design. There were smaller ones to the Charlotte Observer and Wilmington Star News.” 
    “That’s good to know.  May I speak to someone about opening an account, please?” 
    ***
    “We can’t avoid the conversation forever,” Marcellus said as he handed his wife a glass of wine. 
    “I know.” 
    The concerned husband sat down beside his distant wife. She hadn’t been the same since finding out about his brother James. 
    “When were you going to tell me about your step-daughter Lena?” he asked sarcastically. 
    “She is not my step-daughter. Tesha fooled Mandell into giving her his heart, his money, and a fake ass life.” 
    “I’m sorry, L. I don’t follow.” 
    “Edwina is not Mandell’s child.” 
    “What?” Marcellus screamed. 
    “Nope, she lied to him and even collected partial insurance benefits that should have been for the girl.” 
     “Oh Lord, God knows if she ever saw a dime.” 
    “No, I think she just found about 1.5 million dollars,” Lena smiled. 
    “Lena, what did you do?” 
    “Nothing, Babe.” 
    “What did you have done?” he insisted. 
    “I was calling Tyler, our banker and just gave her a heads up that my son was getting married and that he and his fiancé were already together. I