Chapter 2: The Template
Part 2 — Comment Continuation
---
I stood on that porch and I kept my voice low.
Ellie was in the car.
That was the only reason.
"Diane.
You called us every week for four months.
You begged us for this weekend."
"I did.
And I gave her a wonderful time." Still that smile.
"That doesn't mean it was free."
Marcus put his hand on my arm.
I stepped back.
"Mom, we're not paying this."
Her smile didn't move.
"Then I'll remember that next time you need someone to step in."
That was when I noticed something.
The invoice wasn't handwritten.
It wasn't a rough note.
It was formatted.
Columns.
A logo at the top — her initials, inside a little oval.
Like she'd made a template.
Like she'd done this before.
I looked at Marcus.
He'd seen it too.
"Mom…
is this the first time you've made one of these?"
She didn't answer right away.
And in that pause, something shifted on her face.
Just for a second.
Not guilt exactly.
Something older than that.
She glanced toward the car — toward Ellie — and then back at us.
"Your sister never complained," she said quietly.
Marcus went completely still.
---
What does Marcus's sister know?
May you like
And what has Diane been doing for years that no one talked about?
The full story is in the link below — and what comes next changes everything.
