A lot.
Chloe called me from upstairs while you were out.
She was whispering.
She said he’d been acting strange all week and she was scared to be alone with him.
She asked me to come over.”
Home Furnishings
My chest tightened.
“I got there in twenty minutes.
Chloe met me at the door.
Daniel was in the living room.
He told us both to get in the car.
Said he needed to drive.
Said he needed air.” Ava’s jaw tightened.
“Chloe looked at me like she wanted me to say no.
But he was already holding the keys.”
Clothing Accessories
“Why didn’t she call me?”
“She tried.
You didn’t pick up.”
I remembered that night.
I’d been at my sister’s.
We’d opened a second bottle of wine.
My phone had been somewhere in my bag.
“He got on the highway,” Ava continued.
“He was going too fast.
Doors & Windows
Chloe told him to slow down.
He told her to be quiet.” Her voice dropped to almost nothing.
“Then she grabbed his arm.
And he—”
She stopped.
“He what?”
Ava looked at her hands.
“He pushed her.
Hard.
Into the door.
Autos & Vehicles
And that’s when he lost control of the car.”
The kitchen was completely silent.
“The police report said you were driving,” I said.
“He told me what to say before the ambulance arrived.
He said if I told the truth, he’d make sure I went to prison.
He said no one would believe a girl like me over a man like him.” She finally looked up.
“And he was right.
I was sixteen.
I had two priors for shoplifting.
Anatomy
He was a respected man with a clean record and a grieving wife.” Her voice broke.
“I was so scared.
I just said what he told me to say.”
