“She took to motherhood with the same intensity she did everything. I was a new lawyer trying to prove myself at a cutthroat firm, so I wasn’t always the most consistent presence, but I didn’t see any red flags. It wasn’t until Aidan got older that it all began to crumble. When he was little, Maureen loved Aidan. I mean, she was literally the definition of helicopter parent, practically smothering him with love and affection. As he got older, she wanted him to stay her sweet, malleable baby, and he wanted his independence. He didn’t worship her the way she needed, and it triggered something. I came home from work one day when he was ten, and Maureen told me, ‘I got a job.’ I always supported her working. This job was different. It became Mo’s obsession. She would leave at dawn. Return home at midnight or later. She barely saw Aidan and when she did, she had no interest in him whatsoever. I didn’t know what the hell was happening. Whenever I would broach the subject, she shut me down, telling me her work required her ultimate focus. ‘He’s fine without me,’ she used to say.”

Paul snorted. “Can you imagine saying that a child is perfectly fine without his mother? The kid suffered. He wanted and needed her. As time went by, Maureen grew more and more annoyed by minor things at work. Let’s say a coworker received praise for something. She would stew about it, analyzing the slight, agonizing over why she wasn’t getting credit for all she’d done. We’d be at dinner days later, or at one of Aidan’s soccer games, and all Maureen could talk about was work. Ranting and raving about this woman, Aura, and how she was sabotaging everything Maureen did. She always took her work seriously, always needed to be valued and appreciated. I chalked it up as a product of her environment. Growing up in that kind of wealth is…”

“Exhausting?” Becca said. Some of her most privileged were also the most depressed, anxious, and unfilled.

A sad smile escaped from Paul. “It is exhausting. Which is why I left it all behind. Legally I was entitled to half of Maureen’s assets. I didn’t want a dime. There’s a trust fund set up in Aidan’s name. When he turns twenty-one, he can do what he wants with it, but as far as I’m concerned her money is poison.”

“I understand. I do,” Becca said.

Paul took a final drag of the joint and stubbed it out. “About six months before she disappeared, Aura accused Maureen of violating the nonprofit’s policy by spending time with the teenagers outside of designated hours. Rumors were going around that Maureen was taking these kids to dinners and on shopping sprees. Many staff members thought these relationships were inappropriate.”

“Were they?” Becca asked.