Her father: A gambler and more

"I don't know what you're talking about," Mom said. "You're making stuff up."

Did she really think I couldn't remember the events that took place back when I was eight years old, a child fully aware of the tensions at home and paying attention to their causes? Or had she actually forgotten what happened herself?

"Mom, I saw the envelopes that got sent to the bank every month. I know Dad embezzled the money, got fired, and spent years paying back what he'd stolen...."

"You are crazy! Those were our mortgage payments! That's all you saw--and your father did nothing of the kind. Where would you get such a thought?"

"Are you telling me he didn't lose thousands of dollars gambling, forcing him in desperation to 'borrow' the money from his employer? Are you saying the Mafia wasn't threatening him for repayment, and that he didn't move out of our house for fear they'd come after him?"

"That never happened! None of it. You have a great imagination, though. You should be writing novels, that's what I think. Just don't make up stories about your father."

I tried to believe her, truly I did. But then one day at a family party, my cousin got drunk and spilled the beans. When Dad's gambling nearly cost him his family and his life, Mom made him promise never to gamble again or she'd divorce him. He promised, but then went underground, using my cousin to place bets for him, pay off debts, and collect any winnings.

When Dad died, my cousin--the only other name on Dad's secret bank account--moved his family into a gorgeous house on the right side of the tracks and bought a decked-out 15-passenger van. My mother got the change she found in Dad's pockets and we kids inherited one more secret--the one about the alliance between my father and my cousin.

A secret we've kept from her the past 25 years.