I pressed play.

The footage was grainy, taken from the security camera in Aunt Patricia’s foyer.

It showed me standing near the door, my coat half-on.

Then, the video jumped.

It bypassed the long argument about Jason’s medical school applications.

It showed me raising my hand and pushing Aunt Patricia backward.

The next frame showed Patricia falling onto the rug, looking fragile and terrified.

The video cut again, showing me holding the neck of the broken wine bottle in my hand, pointing it toward her.

The audio was heavily manipulated.

My voice sounded loud, harsh, and threatening.

*”…you will never get into medical school…”* played on a loop.

The context of the argument was completely gone.

The footage of Patricia swinging the heavy bottle at my head had been cleanly sliced out.

In this version, I was the sole aggressor.

I leaned against the kitchen counter, the room spinning slightly.

Another notification banner popped up at the top of my screen.

It was an email notification from my personal account.

The sender was Dr. Robert Chen, the admissions director at Georgetown.

I tapped the email.