Chương 8
“She didn’t release Ava when I first told her.”
Mark cursed under his breath.
“Did Ava have marks?”
“Her wrist was red.”
“And anywhere else?”
“I didn’t see anything.”
Rachel said something in the background.
Mark answered her, then returned to the phone.
“She says the redness was still there when she buckled Ava into the car.”
Frank closed his eyes.
“Okay.”
“That matters.”
“I know.”
“Do you?”
Mark’s tone changed.
Frank let the question pass.
“I’m not arguing with you.”
“Good.”
Mark took a breath.
“Then after Ava was away from her, you slapped your wife.”
“Yes.”
“One time?”
“Yes.”
“Open hand?”
“Yes.”
“And you punched the security guy.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“He rushed me and grabbed for my shoulder.”
“So you thought he was attacking you?”
“In the moment, yes.”
“You sure?”
Frank looked at his hand.
The knuckles were reddened.
“No.”
Mark went silent.
Frank continued.
“I’m sure he grabbed me.”
“I’m asking if you’re sure a punch was necessary.”
“No.”
“Okay.”
There was something methodical about Mark’s questions that made Frank understand why Rachel had married him.
Mark became irritatingly precise when everyone else became emotional.
Usually Frank admired that.
Tonight it felt like being measured for consequences.
“Do you know whether there are cameras in the house?”
Frank frowned.
“Outside.”
“Inside?”
“No.”
“Are you certain?”
“Yes.”
“What about the alarm system?”
“Door sensors only.”
Mark said something to Rachel again.
Frank heard Ava cough faintly in the background and felt his chest tighten.
“Is she awake?”
“No.”
Rachel’s voice came closer.
“She shifted.”
Mark returned.
“We’re taking her to urgent care.”
Frank stood.
“I’ll come.”
“No.”
The answer was immediate.
Frank gripped the phone.
“She might need me.”
“She needs quiet.”
“I can give her quiet.”
Mark lowered his voice.
“She saw you hit two adults.”
The sentence stopped him.
Frank sat again.
“You’re right.”
“I’m not trying to punish you.”
“I know.”
“I don’t think you do.”
Mark sighed.
“Look, if there are marks, I want them documented.”
“That makes sense.”
“And I want a doctor to look at her.”
“Yes.”
“And then Rachel and I will decide what to do next.”
Frank stared at the dark window.
“Okay.”
Mark hesitated.
“Your wife cannot be around Ava.”
“I know.”
“Not tonight.”
“I know.”
“Not tomorrow.”
“I said I know.”
The sharpness came out before he could stop it.
Mark went silent.
Frank rubbed his face.
“Sorry.”
“Yeah.”
“Sorry.”
Another pause.
“I’ll call after the doctor.”
The line ended.
Frank lowered the phone.
The back door opened.
His wife stepped inside.
She had put on no coat, and her arms were crossed tightly against the cold.
“Who was that?”
“Rachel.”
His wife looked at him.
“And?”
“Mark wants Ava examined.”
Her mouth tightened.
“For what?”
“Her wrist.”
“I did not injure her wrist.”
“It was red.”
“Because she was pulling.”
Frank stared at her.
She heard herself.
He saw it happen.
Her expression shifted.
She looked down at her hands.
“I didn’t mean it like that.”
“But you did hold on.”
“Yes.”
She walked toward the sofa.
“Are they calling the police?”
“I don’t know.”
Her head lifted.
“You don’t know?”
“They haven’t decided.”
“Rachel would do that to me?”
Frank almost answered too quickly.
He stopped.
“To you?”
His wife blinked.
He continued.
“You’re still thinking about what Rachel might do to you.”
“What am I supposed to think about?”
“Ava.”
“I am thinking about Ava.”
“No.”
His voice remained quiet.
“You’re thinking about whether this becomes a police matter.”
“Because that affects all of us.”
“It affects you most.”
She stared at him.
“You think you’re protected?”
“No.”
“Because you’re not.”
“I know.”
“You hit me.”
“I know.”
“You punched an employee.”
“I know.”
Her breathing quickened.
“If the police come here, you may have a problem too.”
“Yes.”
The answer made her angrier.
“Stop doing that.”
“Doing what?”
“Answering like you’re already above it.”
“I’m not above anything.”
“You sound calm.”
“I’m tired.”
She began pacing.
“You always look reasonable after you explode.”
Frank watched her.
The accusation was accurate enough that he did not reject it.
She stopped near the toy box.
“If they report me, what happens?”
“I don’t know.”
“You don’t know anything tonight.”
“That’s true.”
She pressed both hands against her temples.
“I need to call someone.”
“Who?”
“A lawyer.”
Frank looked at her.
The speed of the thought disturbed him, though he knew it was practical.
His wife saw his reaction.
“Don’t look at me like that.”
“Like what?”
“Like asking for a lawyer makes me guilty.”
“It doesn’t.”
“Then why did your face change?”
“Because Ava is at urgent care and you’re thinking about legal defense.”
Her eyes flashed.
“What would you prefer?”
“I don’t know.”
“You keep saying that.”
“Because I don’t.”
She picked up her phone from the side table.
Frank noticed a tremor in her thumb as she unlocked it.
That was the first visible fear she had shown.
He felt no satisfaction.
“What are you going to tell the lawyer?”
“The truth.”
“Which version?”
Her head snapped toward him.
“That’s low.”
“It’s a real question.”
She stared at him.
Frank stood.
“I’m not accusing you of inventing things.”
“It sounds exactly like that.”
“I’m asking whether you’re going to say Ava was out of control and Eli was disciplining her, or whether you’re going to say you were angry and made one child hit another.”
His wife lowered the phone.
“I did not make him.”
Frank did not answer.
Her face flushed.
“He could have refused.”
“He’s nine.”
“Nine-year-olds have choices.”
“So do sixty-five-year-olds.”
She flinched.
He regretted the cruelty of the delivery but not the point.
She sat down heavily.
“I was trying to make a point.”
“To whom?”
She did not answer.
Frank took a step closer.
“To Ava?”
Silence.
“To Eli?”
Nothing.
“To Rachel?”
His wife’s eyes lifted.
Frank felt the answer before she said anything.
May you like
“You wanted Rachel to know you still had authority.”
“That is not what I said.”
