Dad’s call came through immediately. I let it ring out, then played the voicemail on speaker. «Maya! I don’t know what kind of game you’re playing, but you need to call me back right now. The bank froze our accounts, and they’re talking about fraud investigations. This isn’t funny anymore.»
«Game?» Kinley raised an eyebrow. «He thinks this is a game?»
«Wait, there’s more.»
Mom’s voicemail came next, her voice shaking. «Maya. Sweetheart. Please call us. There’s been some terrible mistake with the bank. They’re saying the apartment sale was illegal, but that’s impossible. We’re family. Please, honey. We need your help.»
Then Sasha’s voice, pure venom. «Maya. I swear to God, if you’re behind this, I will never forgive you. My wedding is ruined. Destiny just called crying because nothing is paid for. Fix this now!»
«Still making it all about her,» Kinley observed. «She has no idea how much worse it’s about to get.»
I opened my laptop and pulled up the care package I’d been preparing: bank statements, payment records, mortgage documents. Everything showed exactly how much money I’d been funneling to my family for years.
«I’m sending it now.»
«The whole package?»
«Every last document. I want them to understand exactly what they’ve lost.»
I attached the files to an email and typed a simple message: «Since you’re having banking issues, I thought you might want to review your financial history. Pay special attention to the payments from Meridian Holdings. That’s the company that’s been covering your mortgage for the past four years—the same company that actually owned the apartment you just tried to steal. Consider this my resignation as your anonymous benefactor. Best of luck with the wedding, Maya.»
I hit send and immediately called Kinley back. «It’s done. They should get it any minute now.»
«Maya, you just nuked them from orbit.»
«They nuked themselves when they forged my signature.»
My phone started ringing again. Dad, then Mom, then Sasha. I declined every call and watched the voicemails pile up.
«Play the latest one,» Kinley said.
I put Dad’s newest message on speaker. His voice was different now—panicked, desperate. «Maya, we got your email. I… we need to talk. Please. I know you’re angry, but we can work this out. We’re family. You can’t just… please call me back.»
«He’s starting to understand. Wait. Here’s Mom’s.»
Mom’s voice was barely a whisper. «Maya, I don’t understand. You’ve been… All this time, you were… Oh God. What have we done? Please, sweetheart. Please call us. We can fix this.»
Then Sasha’s, screaming, «You psychotic bitch! You’ve been controlling our lives this whole time, playing puppet master while pretending to be the victim! I hate you! My wedding is destroyed because of your sick revenge fantasy!»
«And there’s the real Sasha,» I said. «She’s still not getting it.»
My laptop chimed with an email from Destiny. The subject line read, «URGENT: Gill Wedding Cancellation.»
«The wedding planner’s bailing.» I opened the message and read it aloud. «Dear Gill family, Due to non-payment and the current legal issues surrounding your accounts, I am forced to cancel all services for the Sasha Gill wedding. All vendors have been notified. I will be pursuing legal action for damages to my business reputation. Do not contact me again.»
«Ouch. It gets better. Look at this.» I pulled up Sasha’s Instagram. Her latest post from this morning showed her at the bridal salon, beaming in her wedding dress with the caption, «Final fitting before the big day! Can’t wait to marry my prince! #Blessed #Bride #Sanv #DreamWedding.»
The comment section was brutal. «Didn’t your wedding just get canceled?» «Girl, the tea is spilling on Facebook about your family.» «Is it true your parents committed fraud?» «Your wedding planner is dragging you on her business page.» «Yikes, this is embarrassing.»
«She’s being roasted alive,» Kinley said. «Public humiliation was always her worst fear.»
My phone rang again. This time it was a number I didn’t recognize.
«Answer it,» Kinley said. «Might be interesting.»
«Hello?»
«Is this Maya? This is Xander. Sasha’s… well, I guess her ex-fiancé now.»
I put him on speaker and gestured to Kinley. «Hi Xander, I’m sorry to hear about the engagement.»
«Are you? Because from what I’m hearing, you orchestrated this whole thing.»
«I didn’t orchestrate anything. I just stopped enabling fraud.»
«Look, I need to understand what happened. Sasha’s telling me you sabotaged her wedding out of jealousy. But the legal documents suggest something else entirely.»
«What do the documents suggest?»
«That your parents stole your property and committed bank fraud. Multiple felonies, actually.»
«That’s accurate.»
«And you’ve been financially supporting them for years without them knowing?»
«Also accurate.»
Xander was quiet for a moment. «Jesus Christ. Sasha has no idea, does she? She really thinks you’re the villain here.»
«Sasha thinks whatever makes her feel better about herself.»
«I can’t marry into this family, Maya. This level of deception, the fraud, the way they treated you… I can’t be part of it.»
«That’s probably wise.»
«For what it’s worth, I’m sorry. What they did to you was unforgivable.»
«Thank you.»
After he hung up, Kinley whistled low. «Even the groom figured it out.»
«Xander’s not stupid. His family has old money. They know how to spot grifters.»
«So Sasha lost her wedding, her fiancé, and her family’s about to lose their house.»
«Don’t forget her social media reputation.»
«Maya, your phone’s lighting up again.»
I looked at the screen: 17 missed calls, 23 unread voicemails, and 46 text messages. «They’re in full panic mode.»
«Are you going to answer eventually?»
«Maybe. When I’m ready to hear them beg.»
I turned my phone face down and smiled. Let them sit with what they’ve done for a while. They’ve had years to treat me like family instead of a bank account. Now they get to learn what life looks like without me.
«Maya?»
«Yeah?»
«Remind me to never cross you.»
I laughed. And for the first time in days, it felt genuine. «Too late for them to learn that lesson.»
By morning, the situation had exploded beyond anything I’d anticipated. Kinley called me at 7 a.m., her voice tight with urgency. «Maya, you need to see what’s happening online. Sasha’s having a complete meltdown on social media.»
I grabbed my laptop and pulled up Instagram. Sasha’s account was a disaster zone. She’d posted a twenty-slide story rant at 3 a.m., and it was still going.
«‘My psycho sister has destroyed my life,'» I read aloud. «‘She’s been secretly controlling our family’s finances for years, like some kind of puppet master. She stole my wedding money and got my fiancé to break up with me. She’s a manipulative, jealous bitch who can’t stand seeing me happy.'»
«It gets worse,» Kinley said. «Keep reading.»
«‘Maya has been pretending to be poor while secretly being rich and making us beg for money. She’s sick and twisted, and I hope she rots in hell. She ruined my perfect wedding because she’s a sad, lonely workaholic who will die alone.'»
«The comments are brutal.» I scrolled down. Hundreds of responses, and most of them weren’t supporting Sasha. «Girl, your sister was paying your bills and you sold her house? That’s messed up.» «Wait, so she was helping your family and you’re mad at her for stopping? Make it make sense.» «This sounds like your family committed fraud and got caught.» «The audacity to call someone manipulative when you literally stole their property.»
«She’s getting destroyed in the comments. It’s not just Instagram,» Kinley said. «Someone screenshotted her rant and posted it on Reddit. It’s gone viral. The post has 15,000 upvotes and 3,000 comments.»
«What’s the general consensus?»
«That your family are entitled fraudsters who got what they deserved.»
My phone started ringing. Mom’s contact photo appeared.
«Answer it,» Kinley said. «I want to hear this.»
I put it on speaker. «Maya, thank God. We need to talk.»
«Do we?»
«Please, sweetheart. Come home. We can work this out as a family.»
«The same family that sold my home behind my back?»
«We made a mistake. A terrible mistake. But we can fix it.»
«How exactly do you plan to fix fraud, Mom?»
«Don’t call it that. We’re family. We were just… borrowing against your asset.»
«By forging my signature.»
«Maya, please. Your father’s having chest pains from the stress. Sasha’s been crying for two days straight. We need you.»
«Where was this concern when you were spending my money?»
«We didn’t know it was your money. You never told us about the holding company or the payments. We thought we had a guardian angel.»
«You did. And you betrayed her.»
