Chapter 1 - The Line in the Sand
The drive back to our house was suffocatingly quiet. The rain had turned to sleet, drumming against the windshield like tiny stones. Mia was asleep in her car seat, exhausted by the emotional whiplash of the previous night.
Sarah stared out the passenger window, the purple bruise on her cheekbone stark against her pale skin.
My phone buzzed again. It was my brother, David.
Mom is hyperventilating. Are you happy now? Just come back and let her apologize so we can move on.
I pulled the car onto the shoulder of the highway, put it in park, and typed my reply.
She didn't hit me, David. She hit my wife. There is no moving on from this. Do not contact me again until you figure out how to be a man instead of her meat shield.
I blocked his number. Then I blocked Mom’s. Then I blocked Chloe’s.
When we finally pulled into our driveway, my stomach dropped. Parked right in front of our garage was Mom’s silver Lexus.
She was standing on our covered porch, clutching a tissue, wearing her expensive cashmere coat. The moment she saw my headlights, her face twisted into a mask of tragic sorrow. She rushed toward the car before I had even turned off the ignition.
"Don't open the door," I told Sarah quietly. "Keep the doors locked."
I stepped out into the freezing sleet. Mom reached for me, sobbing. "Michael, thank God. I have been out of my mind with worry! You can't just block my number!"
"Get off my property, Mom," I said, my voice completely hollow.
She recoiled as if I had slapped her. "Michael! I came to apologize! I brought Mia her leftover pie! You are tearing this family apart over one little mistake!"
"You assaulted my wife," I said, stepping between her and the car. "You called her trash in front of my daughter. You have exactly thirty seconds to get back in your car and leave, or I am calling the police and having you trespassed."
May you like
Her sorrow vanished in an instant, replaced by the icy, calculating glare I grew up fearing. "You wouldn't dare. I pay the mortgage on this house, Michael. You kick me out, I sell it out from under you."
She thought she held the winning card. She had no idea the game was already over.
