Then Mom told me something even more disturbing.
A week before the assault, Brandon had directly asked her for a $60,000 loan to help his brother’s failing business venture.
She politely refused.
He became furious and accused her of being ungrateful for the hospitality he had supposedly given her.
I closed my eyes in disgust.
Brandon constantly referred to the property as his apartment.
But I had paid more than half of the mortgage.
I had funded most of the renovations.
I had purchased nearly all the furniture with my own money.
When Mom refused to give him $60,000, he created the missing-cash scheme to destroy her credibility.
He apparently believed that once I became convinced she had stolen from him, I would be embarrassed enough to throw her out.
Then I would return to him.
“He really thought I was going to choose him over my own mother,” I said.
