He was tall, middle-aged, and carried himself with the patient caution of someone who had walked into many family disputes that were not really about the thing everyone claimed.
He approached my father first.
“Is this your property, sir?”
Dad pointed toward the house beyond the trees.
“It belongs to my daughter, but we have a financial interest.”
“Is your name on the deed?”
“Not yet.”
The deputy paused.
“Not yet?”
My father held up the envelope.
“We have an agreement.”
Rachel’s voice came through the speaker.
“Deputy, my name is Rachel Cole.
I represent the property owner.
The deed is solely in her name.
The people at the gate do not have permission to enter.
The document Mr.
Mercer is holding appears to contain my client’s forged signature.”
The deputy looked at the camera, then back at my father.
“Sir, set the envelope on the hood of your vehicle.”
Dad stiffened.
“You cannot seize private family records.”
“I asked you to set it down.
I didn’t say I was seizing it.”
My mother began talking quickly.
“This is a misunderstanding.
Our daughter invited us.
She said yes.
We packed for a family reunion, and now she’s suddenly acting as if we’re criminals.”
The deputy glanced at the trailer.
“How long were you planning to stay?”
“A couple of weeks,” my mother said.
At the same time, Melissa said, “Until I found another place.”
The deputy looked from one woman to the other.
My mother closed her eyes.
“Her lease ended unexpectedly.”
“It did not end unexpectedly,” Melissa said.
Her voice had changed.
It was quieter, stripped of the sharpness she had used with me.
“Mom told me not to renew it.
She said the lake house was becoming family property.”
My father swore under his breath.
The deputy turned toward Melissa.
“Were you told the owner had agreed to that?”
“Mom said she had.”
“Did the owner tell you directly?”
Melissa looked up at the camera.
For the first time that day, she seemed to see me rather than the locked gate.
“No.”
My mother grabbed her arm.
“You are confused and emotional.”
Melissa pulled away.
“You had me give notice on my apartment.”
“Because we were helping you.”
“You said she owed us.”
