Chapter 2

Vanessa's voice rang out, sharp with impatience.

"The delivery guy says you're not in the lobby. You can't even be trusted to watch our bags?"

"My mom just fell asleep. Could you stop being so difficult for once?"

I put the call on speaker.

"Well? Say something! Are you sulking again?"

"I'm telling you right now, don't you dare give me an attitude about tonight."

"Mom's back is killing her, and Tyler's upset because he just quit his job. You're his brother-in-law. What's wrong with making a little sacrifice?"

"If you can't handle one uncomfortable night, what kind of father are you going to be?"

I listened without interrupting.

An announcement sounded above the gate.

"Attention, passengers traveling to Riverton. Your flight is now boarding."

There was a second of silence on Vanessa's end.

"Where are you? What was that about boarding?"

"The airport."

"What are you doing at the airport?"

"Making room for the three of you."

"Have you lost your mind? You're running away in the middle of the night?"

"Vanessa." I cut across her shouting.

"What?"

"Sending me to the front desk at our honeymoon inn to wash up and make do for the night—that's the last thing you'll ever say to me."

I ended the call and blocked her number.

Tyler was next. Then Diane. I left every family group chat, one after another.

When I finished, I turned on airplane mode, slipped my phone into my bag, and rolled my suitcase toward the gate.

A flight attendant smiled as she checked my boarding pass.

"Welcome aboard, Mr. Byrne."

I nodded and settled into the wide first-class seat. Another attendant offered me a warm towel.

"Thank you."

I wiped my hands, reached into my bag, and took out the divorce papers I'd prepared weeks ago but hadn't been able to bring myself to sign.

I uncapped my pen.

At the bottom of the final page, I wrote my name in one firm stroke.

Elliot Byrne.

Not a single tear fell onto the paper.

***

It was barely dawn when my flight landed in Riverton.

I unlocked the door to the condo I'd shared with Vanessa.

The air was stale, as if nobody had opened a window in weeks. Vanessa's high heels were scattered across the entryway, mixed with the bright red dance shoes Diane wore to her senior fitness classes.

A pair of unwashed stockings lay across the coffee table. Beneath them was a handwritten note titled "Shopping List for the Trip Home."

Diane had covered the page with requests.

Two tins of premium smoked salmon for her friend Walt Bennett.

Three silk scarves for her friend Joan Parker.

A pair of silver bracelets Tyler wanted.

At the bottom, in tiny handwriting, she'd added: "Have Elliot pay for everything. Consider it his way of taking care of family."

I dropped the list into the trash.

Then I dug out the biggest black garbage bags I could find.

Dirty clothes from the sofa. Fruit peels from the coffee table. The cardboard boxes Diane had stacked across the balcony. I shoved it all into the bags and dragged them into the hallway, one after another.

When my phone connected to the home Wi-Fi, several texts arrived.

Tyler had forwarded screenshots of messages Diane had sent before I blocked her.

"Elliot, I found a diamond bracelet I like. It's six thousand dollars."

"Transfer the money to Vanessa's card right away. It's the least you can do for me."

"I raised her, and you got to marry her. Spending a little on me is only fair."

I opened my banking app.

The card Vanessa carried was an authorized-user card on my account, issued under my name. I selected it and tapped Freeze Card.

Then I sent Tyler a screenshot.

"The card's frozen. Go ask your own sister."

I blocked him again.

Less than five minutes later, Vanessa called from a number I didn't recognize.

I picked up without saying a word.

"Elliot! How long are you planning to keep up this tantrum?" she screamed.

"Why did you freeze my card? Mom's standing at the counter with her bracelet right now!"