Barbara\u2019s attorney requested a meeting the following week.<\/p>\n
Mr. Sterling recommended that I attend remotely rather than in person.<\/p>\n
I agreed.<\/p>\n
Mark chose to be there.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d I asked him beforehand.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I spent years making you deal with things I should have dealt with.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn\u2019t mean you need to confront her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why?\u201d<\/p>\n
His answer was simple.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to hear what she says when she knows I won\u2019t rescue her.\u201d<\/p>\n
The meeting took place in a neutral conference facility.<\/p>\n
I joined from Mr. Sterling\u2019s office through a secure video connection.<\/p>\n
Barbara sat at a long table beside her attorney.<\/p>\n
She looked smaller than I remembered.<\/p>\n
Not weaker.<\/p>\n
Compressed.<\/p>\n
Like someone who had realized intimidation no longer expanded to fill the room.<\/p>\n
Mark entered and sat across from her.<\/p>\n
She watched him closely.<\/p>\n
No greeting.<\/p>\n
No tears.<\/p>\n
Mr. Sterling began by clarifying that the meeting did not waive rights or substitute for any formal process.<\/p>\n
Barbara\u2019s attorney agreed.<\/p>\n
Then he spoke.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy client would like to resolve certain civil financial issues without unnecessary escalation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara glanced at Mark.<\/p>\n
The phrase was polished.<\/p>\n
The message was familiar.<\/p>\n
Help me avoid consequences.<\/p>\n
Mr. Sterling asked what she proposed.<\/p>\n
The attorney opened a folder.<\/p>\n
Barbara would transfer her interest in certain disputed funds.<\/p>\n
She would cooperate in closing fraudulent accounts.<\/p>\n
She would assist with correcting Ethan\u2019s credit.<\/p>\n
She would reimburse portions of losses over time.<\/p>\n
In exchange, she wanted Mark and me to characterize many past transactions as authorized family financial arrangements rather than intentional misuse.<\/p>\n
I leaned toward the screen.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara looked directly into the camera.<\/p>\n
\u201cSarah.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her attorney raised a hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cMrs. Carter, this is a settlement discussion.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI understand.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen perhaps hear the full proposal.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI will hear it. I won\u2019t agree to describe unauthorized accounts as authorized.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou always need everything to sound criminal.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cI need things to sound accurate.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou benefited from my help for years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI benefited from you organizing paperwork. That is not consent to practice my signature.\u201d<\/p>\n
She stiffened.<\/p>\n
Her attorney intervened.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy client disputes the characterization of those pages.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr. Sterling replied.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe forensic examiner can address that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara\u2019s eyes shifted.<\/p>\n
There it was again.<\/p>\n
Not fear of being misunderstood.<\/p>\n
Fear of records.<\/p>\n
Her attorney continued.<\/p>\n
The apartment could potentially be sold.<\/p>\n
Proceeds could compensate for disputed debts.<\/p>\n
The hidden accounts could be unwound.<\/p>\n
Mark asked, \u201cWhat do you want from me?\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara\u2019s lawyer glanced at her.<\/p>\n
She answered herself.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want you to tell the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark almost smiled.<\/p>\n
\u201cOkay.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her expression changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew I helped you financially.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou asked me for advice.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou complained about Sarah controlling money.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou sent me documents.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou gave me access.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo some things.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou trusted me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou wanted protection if Sarah left.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark paused.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was afraid of what divorce would mean.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara looked almost triumphant.<\/p>\n
Then he continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I never asked you to open accounts I didn\u2019t know about.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her expression tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cI never asked you to use Sarah\u2019s identity.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
\u201cI never asked you to use Ethan\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her attorney glanced at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cI never asked you to submit a refinance application.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara\u2019s lips thinned.<\/p>\n
\u201cI never asked you to open life insurance on Sarah.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMark\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI never asked you to change the beneficiary.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was protecting you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou tried to remove me as beneficiary.\u201d<\/p>\n
She stopped.<\/p>\n
Mark continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cI never asked you to hire a lawyer in my name.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were going to need one.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t ask.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew what was coming.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause you read Sarah\u2019s email.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara looked toward me on the screen.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe had already decided to destroy our family.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt almost nothing.<\/p>\n
That was new.<\/p>\n
Once, such a sentence would have pulled me into an argument.<\/p>\n
Now I simply said, \u201cI decided to file for divorce.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew what that would do to him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou didn\u2019t care.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI cared enough to spend years asking him to change.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark lowered his eyes.<\/p>\n
Barbara saw it.<\/p>\n
\u201cLook at him.\u201d<\/p>\n
I did.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s broken.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark lifted his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m your mother. I know you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
His voice was calm.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know how to activate me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara\u2019s mouth opened.<\/p>\n
He continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know what makes me guilty. You know what makes me angry. You know which version of Dad makes me defend you. You know which version of Sarah makes me resent her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her face hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou sound rehearsed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve had a lot to think about.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou sound like her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI finally sound like myself.\u201d<\/p>\n
That landed harder than shouting would have.<\/p>\n
Barbara sat back.<\/p>\n
For several seconds, nobody spoke.<\/p>\n
Her attorney cleared his throat.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are attempting to identify a practical solution.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr. Sterling answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen practical proposals are welcome. False characterization is not.\u201d<\/p>\n
The discussion shifted to money.<\/p>\n
The numbers were ugly.<\/p>\n
My fraudulent credit card.<\/p>\n
The line of credit.<\/p>\n
Ethan\u2019s loan.<\/p>\n
The utility account.<\/p>\n
Mark\u2019s hidden savings.<\/p>\n
The new account.<\/p>\n
Annuity withdrawals.<\/p>\n
Investment proceeds.<\/p>\n
Insurance premiums.<\/p>\n
Legal fees.<\/p>\n
Potential tax exposure.<\/p>\n
Barbara had built so many overlapping arrangements that untangling them would take months.<\/p>\n
At one point, her attorney asked whether Mark intended to claim funds from the annuity as separate inherited property.<\/p>\n
Mark looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr. Sterling stopped him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou should not answer legal ownership questions casually.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cFine.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat money was always yours.\u201d<\/p>\n
He stared at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why didn\u2019t you tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was preserving it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou spent most of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI managed it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou withdrew from it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor necessities.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou bought investments.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo the money could grow.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou paid yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her attorney shifted.<\/p>\n
Mark had noticed something I had not.<\/p>\n
The records showed recurring transfers from the annuity-linked account into Barbara\u2019s checking.<\/p>\n
Same amount.<\/p>\n
Every month.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor management,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou charged me to manage money I didn\u2019t know existed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI spent years handling your affairs.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI never hired you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou needed me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark\u2019s voice softened.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara\u2019s eyes sharpened.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, you did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou would have lost everything without me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI lost my marriage with you.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room became silent.<\/p>\n
Her attorney looked down at his notes.<\/p>\n
Barbara\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n
For the first time, the statement penetrated the armor.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t cause your divorce.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. I did.\u201d<\/p>\n
She blinked.<\/p>\n
He continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cI lied to Sarah. I dismissed her. I gave away household money. I let you into parts of our marriage that weren\u2019t yours.\u201d<\/p>\n
His voice remained steady.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut you helped me believe those choices were loyalty.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara looked almost wounded.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re blaming me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
He leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m refusing to let you carry the blame that belongs to me because if I do that, I\u2019ll become you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her face went still.<\/p>\n
I felt something in my chest tighten.<\/p>\n
Mark was finally learning the distinction he had missed for years.<\/p>\n
Responsibility was not an insult.<\/p>\n
It was ownership.<\/p>\n
Barbara looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou hear this?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s confessing that the money was voluntary.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSome of it was.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her attorney shifted again.<\/p>\n
I continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cI never claimed Mark didn\u2019t voluntarily give you money. I claimed you lied to obtain some of it, used identities without authorization, forged signatures, and created financial arrangements people did not consent to.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara\u2019s mouth tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou always were clinical.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI work in a hospital.\u201d<\/p>\n
She ignored that.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think because you keep your voice calm, you\u2019re right.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked directly into the camera.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe documents are why I think I\u2019m right.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her attorney asked for a break.<\/p>\n
We took fifteen minutes.<\/p>\n
Mark stepped outside.<\/p>\n
When he returned, Barbara\u2019s attorney had apparently spoken to her privately.<\/p>\n
The proposal changed.<\/p>\n
She would transfer the apartment to a restitution trust.<\/p>\n
She would relinquish access to accounts under Mark\u2019s name.<\/p>\n
She would cooperate with fraud corrections.<\/p>\n
She would provide passwords and records.<\/p>\n
She would identify the unidentified man heard on several recovered recordings.<\/p>\n
That last point changed the room.<\/p>\n
Mr. Sterling asked, \u201cWho is he?\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara\u2019s attorney answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cA financial consultant named Victor Hale.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cNever heard of him.\u201d<\/p>\n
I hadn\u2019t either.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he do?\u201d Mr. Sterling asked.<\/p>\n
Barbara spoke.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe advised me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOn fraud?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her attorney objected to the phrasing.<\/p>\n
Barbara ignored him.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe helped structure accounts.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he know identities were being used without authorization?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe knew I handled family finances.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was not the question.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked toward her lawyer.<\/p>\n
He murmured something.<\/p>\n
Barbara folded her hands.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know what he understood.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr. Sterling wrote down the name.<\/p>\n
Then Mark asked the question that mattered to him.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Dad know Victor?\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n
Tiny.<\/p>\n
But visible.<\/p>\n
Mark saw it.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe did.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said nothing.<\/p>\n
\u201cMom.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cVictor worked with your father once.\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda\u2019s records suddenly came back to me.<\/p>\n
Hidden accounts.<\/p>\n
A dead man\u2019s identity.<\/p>\n
Transactions predating David\u2019s death.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long have you known him?\u201d Mark asked.<\/p>\n
Barbara looked tired.<\/p>\n
\u201cYears.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMore than twelve?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her silence answered.<\/p>\n
Mark leaned back.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo Dad found you moving money, and Victor was involved.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t say that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou didn\u2019t have to.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her attorney interrupted.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are not here to litigate historical marital allegations involving a deceased spouse.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re right.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then at Barbara.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re here because she kept doing it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara\u2019s face flushed.<\/p>\n
The break in her control came quickly.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think I enjoyed this?\u201d<\/p>\n
Nobody answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think I wanted to spend my life figuring out how to survive while men made every decision?\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cDad?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYour father controlled everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLinda\u2019s records say otherwise.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLinda saw numbers. She didn\u2019t live with him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he hurt you?\u201d<\/p>\n
The question changed Barbara.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he threaten you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he stop you from working?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he control your access to money?\u201d<\/p>\n
She hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe questioned everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat isn\u2019t what I asked.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wanted receipts.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark almost laughed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou mean accountability.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou sound just like him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn\u2019t answer me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara\u2019s eyes filled.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe made me feel small.\u201d<\/p>\n
There it was.<\/p>\n
Perhaps the closest thing to an honest wound she had offered.<\/p>\n
Mark softened slightly.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked hopeful.<\/p>\n
Then he continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut feeling small didn\u2019t give you permission to steal.\u201d<\/p>\n
The hope vanished.<\/p>\n
Barbara looked away.<\/p>\n
\u201cI did what I had to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
His voice was quiet.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou did what you decided to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
Her attorney resumed.<\/p>\n
There were still potential settlement terms to discuss, but criminal matters were outside the scope of anything we could privately resolve.<\/p>\n
Barbara understood.<\/p>\n
Or at least she understood that her preferred ending\u2014family members quietly absorbing the consequences\u2014was gone.<\/p>\n
At the close of the meeting, she asked to speak to Mark alone.<\/p>\n
He looked at Mr. Sterling.<\/p>\n
Mr. Sterling said, \u201cYour choice.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark agreed to five minutes with the door open and attorneys nearby.<\/p>\n
I remained on the video feed.<\/p>\n
Barbara leaned toward him.<\/p>\n
I could not hear every word.<\/p>\n
But I heard enough.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can make this easier for you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is money Victor knows how to access.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark\u2019s expression changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEnough.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll tell you if you help me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSay the accounts were family arrangements.\u201d<\/p>\n
He stared at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re asking me to lie.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m asking you to remember what I did for you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMark.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou could rebuild.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith stolen money?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith money that should have been yours anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n
He stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her voice sharpened.<\/p>\n
\u201cSarah is leaving you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ll need something.\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked toward the screen where I was watching.<\/p>\n
Then back at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cI need to become someone my son can trust.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara\u2019s face hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cChildren forget.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark\u2019s expression changed completely.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
The word came out almost as a whisper.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, Mom. That\u2019s the problem.\u201d<\/p>\n
He walked away.<\/p>\n
Her attorney rose.<\/p>\n
The meeting ended.<\/p>\n
Later that afternoon, Mr. Sterling called.<\/p>\n
Barbara\u2019s counsel had provided Victor Hale\u2019s contact information.<\/p>\n
Investigators had already begun checking him.<\/p>\n
By evening, they found something.<\/p>\n
Victor had been connected to several small financial complaints over two decades.<\/p>\n
None produced major convictions.<\/p>\n
Most involved elderly relatives, informal family loans, disputed signatures, or assets placed under other people\u2019s names.<\/p>\n
Patterns too messy for simple stories.<\/p>\n
Exactly the kind Barbara understood.<\/p>\n
Then Mr. Sterling sent me one additional document.<\/p>\n
A scanned engagement note from fourteen years earlier.<\/p>\n
Client: Barbara Carter.<\/p>\n
Consultant: Victor Hale.<\/p>\n
Purpose: asset separation and private financial structuring.<\/p>\n
Fourteen years.<\/p>\n
Two years before David died.<\/p>\n
Mark read the same document.<\/p>\n
He called me.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was planning this before Dad died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought everything started because she was grieving.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at the date again.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
I thought of David\u2019s letter.<\/p>\n
Your mother loves you, but sometimes she confuses being loved with being rescued.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt means your father saw the pattern before either of us did.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark stayed silent.<\/p>\n
Then he said, \u201cI spent twelve years thinking I was repairing damage he caused.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I was helping continue hers.\u201d<\/p>\n
I did not answer.<\/p>\n
He did not need me to.<\/p>\n
The truth had finally become strong enough to stand without my voice holding it up.<\/p>\n
Barbara\u2019s attorney requested a meeting the following week. Mr. Sterling recommended that I attend remotely rather than in person. I agreed. Mark chose to be there. \u201cWhy?\u201d I asked him … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5412,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chapter-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5426","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5426"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5426\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5442,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5426\/revisions\/5442"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5412"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5426"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5426"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5426"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}