They had copied my handwriting like common thieves.

“She came into our bedroom,” I said, the realization hitting me like a physical blow.

“Last month, when she offered to fold the laundry. She was looking for my journals.”

Ethan did not deny it.

He just closed his eyes and let his chin drop to his chest.

“She said it was the only way to save Ryan,” he whispered.

“The creditors were coming for everything. They were going to place a lien on Linda’s house because she co-signed his car loan.”

“So to save Linda and Ryan, you risked our home,” I said.

“I didn’t think you’d find out,” he said.

“Because you thought I was too stupid to look at our financial statements?”

“No,” he said. “Because I thought we would have the money back in the account by now.”

I felt a cold numbness spreading down my arms.

This was the man I had lived with for four years.

This was the man who sat across from me at breakfast, knowing he had stolen my identity to bail out his brother.