“The police have the recording.”
His face lost its color.
Then he reached for the weapon he’d used against me for years.
“You’ve got nowhere to go, Maureen.”
I almost smiled.
“That’s what you always wanted me to believe.”
“Whose name is on this mortgage?”
I didn’t answer.
“Whose salary kept this family alive?”
Still nothing.
“Where exactly do you think you’re going?”
Then a floorboard creaked behind him.
Kevin turned.
Sarah stood in the hallway.
Pauline rested against her shoulder.
Kevin’s face went completely blank.
Sarah raised the recorder.
Then she pressed play.
His own voice filled the house.
The threats.
The money.
The warning to disappear.
Kevin stood frozen.
For once, he had nothing to say.
I walked toward Sarah.
I took her hand.
Then we walked straight past him.
Lola’s car was waiting outside.
Months later, I sat in a small duplex rocking Pauline to sleep.
My name was on the lease.
