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00:00The lawyer's office smelled like old leather and expensive cologne.
00:03I sat across from my younger brother David,
00:06watching him sign document after document with a gold pen
00:09that probably cost more than my monthly pension.
00:12It was the reading of our parents' will,
00:14three months after we'd buried them side by side
00:16in the cemetery plot they'd purchased 40 years ago.
00:20David wore a suit that looked tailored.
00:22I wore the same blazer I'd worn to Dad's funeral,
00:25the one with the frayed cuffs.
00:27When the lawyer finished, David smiled at me.
00:30Not a warm smile.
00:32The kind of smile you give someone when you've already won.
00:36Richard, he said,
00:38sliding a small wrapped box across the mahogany table.
00:42Mom and Dad wanted you to have this.
00:44It meant a lot to them.
00:46I unwrapped it slowly,
00:47my 64-year-old hands shaking slightly.
00:51Inside was our family Bible,
00:53the one that had sat on Mom's nightstand for as long as I could remember.
00:57The leather was cracked.
00:58The pages yellowed.
00:59There was a bookmark at Proverbs,
01:01Mom's favorite book.
01:03That's it?
01:03I asked.
01:05David's smile widened.
01:06That's what they wanted you to have.
01:08The estate.
01:10Well, that's been handled.
01:12I'll be managing the properties,
01:14the investments,
01:15everything.
01:16But you got the Bible.
01:17Mom always said you were the spiritual one.
01:20The estate was worth $850,000.
01:23Our childhood home in Portland fully paid off.
01:27Dad's life insurance.
01:28Mom's savings from 50 years of careful budgeting.
01:31The rental property they'd bought in the 80s that was now worth a fortune.
01:35I got a Bible.
01:36I should have fought right there.
01:38Should have demanded to see the will.
01:40Called my own lawyer.
01:41Done something.
01:42But I just nodded.
01:43Tucked the Bible under my arm.
01:45And walked out.
01:4640 years.
01:47I'd spent 40 years helping my little brother.
01:5040 years of being the reliable one.
01:52The one who sacrificed.
01:54The one who gave.
01:56Let me back up.
01:57When David was 19 and dropped out of college with a drug problem.
02:01Who took him in?
02:02I did.
02:03My wife Martha and I had just bought our first home.
02:06A small two-bedroom in Seattle.
02:08We gave David our spare room.
02:10He stayed for three years.
02:12We paid for his rehab.
02:14Twice.
02:14When David was 25 and got arrested for drunk driving.
02:18Who posted bail?
02:20I did.
02:21I was a high school history teacher making $32,000 a year.
02:25The bail was $5,000.
02:27It took me two years to pay off the credit card.
02:29When David was 30 and finally got sober.
02:32Finally got a job selling insurance.
02:35Who co-signed for his first apartment?
02:37I did.
02:38When he got evicted six months later for not paying rent.
02:41Who covered the debt?
02:43I did.
02:44When David was 35 and met Christine.
02:46His first serious girlfriend.
02:48Who hosted their engagement party.
02:50Martha and I did.
02:52We scraped together money we didn't have to make it nice.
02:55David never paid us back.
02:57When David was 40 and Christine left him.
03:00Taking half of everything.
03:01Who let him move into our basement?
03:04I did.
03:05He stayed for 18 months.
03:07Never paid a dime in rent.
03:08When David was 45 and started his own insurance agency.
03:12Who loaned him the startup capital?
03:14I did.
03:16$15,000.
03:17My entire retirement savings at the time.
03:20He promised to pay it back with interest.
03:23I never saw a penny.
03:24When David was 52 and mom had her first stroke.
03:27Who drove down to Portland every weekend to take care of her?
03:31I did.
03:32David lived 20 minutes away.
03:34He visited once a month.
03:36When dad developed dementia at 78.
03:39Who moved them into assisted living?
03:41Who handled the paperwork?
03:43The Medicare claims?
03:44The endless phone calls?
03:46I did.
03:47David was too busy with work.
03:4940 years of being the big brother.
03:51The responsible one.
03:53The one who cleaned up messes and asked for nothing in return.
03:56And now, sitting in my car outside the lawyer's office, I held a Bible worth maybe $20.
04:03I didn't drive home.
04:04I sat there for two hours, just staring at the Bible.
04:08There was an envelope tucked inside that I hadn't noticed before.
04:11I opened it with trembling fingers.
04:13Inside was a handwritten note from mom.
04:16Her handwriting was shaky, probably written in the last months of her life.
04:20Richard, my dear boy, you've always been my rock.
04:24I'm sorry for how things have turned out.
04:27David promised me he would take care of you.
04:29That he would make sure you were provided for from the estate.
04:33He said the lawyers had drawn up papers that would give you half of everything.
04:36I believed him because he's my son.
04:39And I wanted to believe he had finally become the man I raised him to be.
04:43If you're reading this and something is wrong, look for the truth.
04:47I love you, mom.
04:49My hands started shaking so badly I almost dropped the note.
04:53David had lied to our dying mother.
04:55I called Martha.
04:56She answered on the second ring.
04:58How did it go?
04:59She asked.
05:00I need you to do something for me, I said.
05:03I need you to call that lawyer friend of yours.
05:06The one who handled your sister's estate.
05:08I need to see him today.
05:10I didn't go home.
05:12I went straight to James Thornton's office.
05:14James was a bulldog of an attorney.
05:16Sixty years old with silver hair and a reputation for taking on impossible cases.
05:22He'd helped Martha's sister fight a predatory reverse mortgage company and won.
05:26Tell me everything, James said, leaning back in his chair.
05:30I did.
05:30All of it.
05:32Forty years of history.
05:33The lawyer's office.
05:34The Bible.
05:35Mom's note.
05:36James was quiet for a long moment.
05:39Then he picked up his phone.
05:41I'm calling that lawyer's office right now.
05:43I want a copy of that will.
05:45They have to provide it.
05:47Three days later, I sat in James's office again, staring at documents that made my blood
05:52run cold.
05:53The original will, written ten years ago, split everything 50-50 between David and me.
06:00It was clear, legally airtight, notarized, witnessed.
06:05Mom and Dad had been meticulous.
06:07But there was a second will.
06:09This one was dated 18 months ago, right after Dad's dementia diagnosis had become severe.
06:15This will left everything to David, with a note that I would receive a meaningful family
06:20heirloom to be determined by David.
06:23Look at the signatures, James said, pointing.
06:25I looked.
06:26Dad's signature was shaky, almost illegible.
06:30Nothing like his usual careful handwriting.
06:32Your father had advanced dementia 18 months ago, correct?
06:35James asked.
06:36He didn't even recognize me half the time, I said.
06:40There's no way he understood what he was signing.
06:43And your mother?
06:44She had another stroke 16 months ago.
06:47She was in and out of consciousness for weeks.
06:50James tapped the document.
06:52This is fraud, Richard.
06:54Your brother had these papers drawn up when your parents were incapacitated.
06:57He probably told them it was something routine.
07:01Medical paperwork.
07:02Power of attorney.
07:03They signed because they trusted him.
07:05Can we prove it?
07:07We can try.
07:08Do you have medical records from that time period?
07:11I did.
07:13Martha had kept everything.
07:14Every hospital visit.
07:16Every doctor's note.
07:17Every medication change.
07:19She'd been meticulous, because she was trying to get Mom and Dad qualified for better care
07:24benefits.
07:24The medical records were damning.
07:27Dad had been hospitalized with severe confusion the same week the new will was dated.
07:31Mom had been in the ICU.
07:33There was no way either of them had the mental capacity to change their will.
07:37I'm filing a challenge, James said.
07:39This is going to get ugly.
07:41Your brother will fight.
07:42Are you prepared for that?
07:44I thought about 40 years.
07:4540 years of sacrificing.
07:4840 years of being the good son while David took and took and took.
07:52File it, I said.
07:53David called me that night.
07:55It was the first time we'd spoken since the lawyer's office.
07:59What the hell are you doing, he shouted.
08:01You're challenging the will?
08:03Are you serious?
08:04You committed fraud, David.
08:06I did no such thing.
08:08Mom and Dad wanted me to have the estate.
08:10They knew I'd manage it better.
08:12You're a retired teacher living on a pension.
08:15What do you know about managing money?
08:17They wanted us to split it.
08:18I saw the original will.
08:20That was old.
08:21They changed their minds.
08:23They were incapacitated when they supposedly changed their minds.
08:27Dad had dementia.
08:29Mom was in the ICU.
08:31You're calling me a liar?
08:32I'm calling you a fraud.
08:34He hung up.
08:35Three hours later, my phone rang again.
08:38David.
08:39Richard, please.
08:40Don't do this.
08:41Think about the family.
08:43I hung up.
08:44He called back immediately.
08:46We can work this out.
08:47I'll give you some money.
08:48Not half.
08:49I can't do half, but something.
08:53$50,000.
08:54Take it and drop the lawsuit.
08:57No.
08:58$75,000.
09:00That's more than fair.
09:01The estate is worth $850,000, David.
09:05Half of that is $425,000.
09:08You want to give me less than 20% of what I'm legally owed and call it fair?
09:13You don't need that much money.
09:15You've got your pension.
09:16You've got the house.
09:18I've got business expenses.
09:19I've got...
09:20You've got nothing that I care about.
09:22See you in court.
09:23I hung up again.
09:25Over the next week, David called me 67 times.
09:28I counted.
09:30Martha wanted me to block his number, but I didn't.
09:33I wanted him to know I was seeing every call and choosing not to answer.
09:38I wanted him to feel what it was like to need something from someone and have that person not care.
09:43The lawsuit moved forward.
09:45James was relentless.
09:46He subpoenaed medical records, bank statements, emails.
09:51He deposed the lawyer who'd drawn up the second will.
09:54Under questioning, the lawyer admitted David had brought mom and dad in, that they'd seemed confused, but David had assured
10:00him they understood what they were signing.
10:02Did you recommend they seek independent legal counsel?
10:06James asked.
10:07No, the lawyer admitted.
10:09Did you question whether they had the mental capacity to change their will?
10:13I... I trusted, mister.
10:16Richard's judgment that they did.
10:18Mr. David, James corrected.
10:20The younger son, the one who stood to inherit everything.
10:24The lawyer's face went red.
10:26James found more.
10:28Bank records showing David had started moving money out of mom and dad's accounts three months before they died.
10:33Small amounts at first, $500 here, $1,000 there.
10:39Then larger sums.
10:40He'd transferred $45,000 to his own account the week before dad passed away.
10:45He had power of attorney, James explained.
10:48That was legitimate, but he was supposed to use it for their care, not to enrich himself.
10:54This is financial elder abuse.
10:56We weren't just fighting over the will anymore.
10:59We were building a criminal case.
11:01David's lawyer called James six weeks into the lawsuit.
11:04My client would like to settle.
11:06I'm listening, James said.
11:08He'll agree to a 50-50 split of the remaining estate, minus the $45,000 he transferred for their care.
11:16That money wasn't for their care.
11:18It was theft.
11:19We're prepared to go to trial.
11:21So are we.
11:22And when we do, I'm going to make sure the prosecutor's office gets a copy of every document we've uncovered.
11:28Your client committed fraud and elder abuse.
11:31He'll be lucky if he only loses the money.
11:34There was a long pause.
11:35Let me talk to my client.
11:37David called me that night.
11:38Not shouting this time.
11:40Crying.
11:41Richard, please.
11:42You're destroying me.
11:44The lawsuit.
11:45The accusations.
11:46My business is suffering.
11:48Clients are dropping me.
11:50Christine heard about it.
11:51She's telling people I'm a criminal.
11:54Please.
11:55I'll give you everything.
11:56Just make it stop.
11:57You should have thought about that before you lied to our dying mother.
12:01I didn't lie.
12:02I thought they understood.
12:03I thought, you forged their signatures on a will when they didn't know what day it was.
12:08You stole their money.
12:09You tried to cut me out of my inheritance.
12:12And you did all of it while I was driving down every weekend to visit them because you couldn't be
12:17bothered.
12:17I'm your brother.
12:19Brothers don't do what you did.
12:20Richard, please.
12:21I'm begging you.
12:23I'll give you half.
12:24I'll give you the house if you want it.
12:26Just don't press charges.
12:27Please.
12:27I thought about mom's note, about 40 years of David taking and me giving, about the Bible sitting on my
12:34nightstand with that bookmark at Proverbs.
12:37The settlement is this, I said.
12:40You give me 55% of everything.
12:42You keep 45.
12:43The extra 5% is for the $45,000 you stole and the $15,000 I loaned you 20 years
12:52ago that you never paid back.
12:53You sign a confession admitting you manipulated them into signing a will they didn't understand.
12:58And you call every single person in this family and tell them what you did.
13:03That's...
13:04I can't.
13:05Or we go to trial.
13:07I press criminal charges.
13:08And you lose everything, including your freedom.
13:11Your choice, David.
13:13He settled.
13:14The house in Portland sold for $520,000.
13:18The rental property sold for $285,000.
13:23After lawyer fees and estate taxes, there was $720,000 left.
13:29I got 300 nidio sex, no.
13:32David got 300 yugafira, no.
13:35I used some of my share to pay off our mortgage.
13:38Martha cried when I told her.
13:41We'd been making payments for 23 years, always worried about having enough in retirement.
13:46Now, the house was ours.
13:48Free and clear.
13:49I put the rest in investments.
13:51Safe, boring index funds.
13:54James helped me set it up.
13:56At our age, we didn't need to take risks.
13:59We just needed security.
14:01David sent me one final email, six months after everything was settled.
14:05I hope you're happy.
14:07You got your money.
14:08You destroyed my reputation.
14:10Was it worth it?
14:11I didn't respond.
14:12But if I had, I would have told him this.
14:15It wasn't about the money.
14:17It was never about the money.
14:19It was about 40 years of being the reliable one while he was the reckless one.
14:2440 years of sacrifice while he took and took and never said thank you.
14:28It was about mom and dad trusting him in their final days and him betraying that trust for money.
14:34It was about him looking at me in that lawyer's office and thinking I was too weak, too kind, too
14:40forgiving to fight back.
14:42He was wrong.
14:43Three months ago, Martha and I visited mom and dad's graves.
14:47We brought flowers, yellow roses, mom's favorite.
14:50I brought the Bible too, the one David had given me thinking it was worthless.
14:54Inside that Bible, tucked in Proverbs, was mom's note, but there was something else I'd found later.
15:01A list in dad's handwriting, written before the dementia took him.
15:06It was titled, Things I'm Proud Of.
15:08Number one on the list.
15:10Richard's integrity.
15:11He never compromised who he was, even when it would have been easier.
15:15I showed it to Martha.
15:17She squeezed my hand.
15:18He would be proud of you, she said.
15:21For standing up for yourself.
15:22For fighting for what was right.
15:24Maybe she was right.
15:26Or maybe dad would have wanted me to forgive David.
15:29To let it go.
15:30To be the bigger person one more time.
15:32But I'd been the bigger person for 40 years.
15:35I'd sacrificed my own needs.
15:37My own financial security.
15:39My own peace of mind.
15:41To help someone who never appreciated it.
15:43And when I finally stood up for myself.
15:45When I finally said enough.
15:47I didn't feel guilty.
15:48I felt free.
15:49David still lives in Portland.
15:51We haven't spoken since his email.
15:53I heard through cousins that he sold his house and moved into a condo.
15:58His insurance business recovered.
16:00But barely.
16:01Some clients never came back after hearing about the lawsuit.
16:04I don't feel bad about that.
16:06Martha and I live comfortably now.
16:08We take trips we could never afford before.
16:11We help our daughter with her kids.
16:13We donate to causes we care about.
16:15We sleep well at night knowing our retirement is secure.
16:18And every night before bed I read a passage from that old Bible.
16:23The one David thought was worthless.
16:25The one that led me to mom's note.
16:27Which led me to the truth.
16:29Last night I read Proverbs 11 to 1.
16:33Dishonest scales are an abomination to the Lord.
16:36But a just weight is his delight.
16:38For 40 years the scales were unbalanced.
16:41I gave everything.
16:43David took everything.
16:45And in the end I wasn't the one who balanced them.
16:48Justice did that for me.
16:50Sometimes people ask if I regret how things ended with my brother.
16:54They ask if I wish we could have worked it out.
16:56Stayed family.
16:58Moved past it.
16:59I tell them the truth.
17:00David made his choices.
17:02He chose to lie to our dying parents.
17:05He chose to commit fraud.
17:06He chose to steal from them and from me.
17:09Those were his decisions.
17:11Not mine.
17:12I just chose not to let him get away with it.
17:14That's not cruelty.
17:16That's not revenge.
17:17That's just refusing to be a victim anymore.
17:20And if that cost me a brother who was never really a brother anyway.
17:23Then so be it.
17:25I'd rather have my integrity than his approval.
17:28I'd rather have the Bible than his lies.
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