I opened the envelope inside my truck. The letter was written in Dad’s familiar handwriting. He mentioned Lonnie, Troy, and Keith, saying he loved all three of us despite the distance between us. Then he wrote something that made my stomach tighten. He said Charlene had been handling his paperwork and that he feared she wasn’t telling the whole truth about his property. At the bottom, he had written Glen’s telephone number and one sentence: “If anything happens to me, find the blue ledger.”

I called my brothers immediately. Lonnie was furious, Troy was silent, and Keith began crying. None of them had received a funeral notice either. We agreed to meet at Dad’s farm the following morning. When we arrived, Charlene stood on the porch with her arms folded. Before we could say anything, she announced that the property had already been settled and there was nothing left for us.