A burden that did not belong to him.
I turned the key.
I didn't go home.
I drove aimlessly for a few minutes until visibility began to clear from the storm.
I wasn't going to shout.
He wasn't going to break in.
I wasn't going to offer them the show they might have been expecting.
If Daniel had built a lie, I was going to build a way out.
I did not return that day.
I took Ethan to kindergarten as usual, acting as if nothing had happened.
Then I drove to Daniel's office in town.
I needed to confirm something.
The receptionist recognized me.
—Hello, Mrs. Collins.
—Hello. Has Daniel arrived yet?
