The rain hit the dining room window of my aunt’s house in heavy, rhythmic slaps.

Inside, the air smelled of roasted garlic and expensive Cabernet.

My aunt, Patricia, sat at the head of the mahogany table, her manicured fingers tapping against her wine glass.

Across from her, my cousin Jason stared at his plate, his shoulders hunched in a silent pout.

“Eighty thousand dollars, Elizabeth,” Patricia said, her voice dropping to a low, demanding purr.

“That is his first year of tuition,” she added.

I set my fork down on the linen napkin.

“I cannot do that, Aunt Patricia,” I said.

Jason glared up at me, his eyes narrowing.

“You make three times that as Chief of Medicine,” Jason said.

“I have my own debts, Jason, and I worked two jobs during my residency to pay them,” I replied.

“We are family,” Patricia said, her tone hardening.

She leaned forward, her silver bracelets clinking against the edge of the table.

“You wrote his recommendation letters to nine different medical schools,” she said.

“I did,” I said. “Because I believed he was ready to put in the work.”

“Then prove you believe in him,” Patricia said.

“Writing a letter of support is not the same as signing away eighty thousand dollars,” I said.

The silence in the room grew heavy and cold.

My brother, Daniel, sat at the far end of the table, looking down at his lap.

“Elizabeth, just help him out,” Daniel muttered. “It keeps the peace.”

“No, Daniel,” I said, standing up from my chair. “I am not funding his entire career.”

Jason stood up so fast his chair scraped loudly against the hardwood floor.

“You think you’re better than us because of that title at County General,” Jason spat.

“Sit down, Jason,” Uncle Michael said from the hallway doorway, his voice tense.

Patricia did not sit down.

She rose slowly, her hand gripping the neck of the opened wine bottle on the table.

It was a heavy, dark green bottle of French Bordeaux, still half full.

“You ungrateful little girl,” Patricia whispered.

“Patricia, stop,” Uncle Michael said, taking a step into the dining room.