“I have a house in Richmond, a stable job, and a clean record.”

“You have no relationship with her,” I said.

“We’ll build one,” Thomas said, his eyes locking onto Caroline.

“Even if I have to drag you to court-ordered visitation every single weekend.”

He walked toward the front door, his boots heavy on the floorboards.

He stopped at the threshold and looked back at us.

“My lawyer will be in touch by Monday morning,” he said.

The front door clicked shut behind him.

The silence in the room was heavy, thick with the scent of Rebecca’s damp coat and the cold air that had slipped inside.

Rebecca sank into the armchair, her face buried in her hands.

“I’m so sorry,” she wept. “I should have stopped him years ago.”

Caroline didn’t say a word.

She reached out, picked up her phone, and stopped the recording.

Then she looked at the stack of emails on the table.

In the quiet of the room, her phone began to vibrate, the screen lighting up with an incoming call from an unknown number.

Caroline stared at the vibrating phone on the table.