CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 5
Brittany recovered fast.
People like her always did.
She snatched her phone and called her lawyer while standing barefoot on the patio stones, voice rising higher with every unanswered ring.
Eric watched her pace.
Howard sat back down, exhausted by the truth he had carried alone.
“You bought this house?” Eric whispered.
Howard shook his head.
“Your mother-in-law wanted out from under Brittany’s control too. She couldn’t say it in front of her. So she called me.”
Eric turned slowly.
“Brittany’s mother gave you the house?”
“She said she wanted someone kind to own it before Brittany turned it into a throne.”
Inside, Brittany’s voice cut through the glass door.
“This is fraud,” she snapped into the phone. “He’s old. He’s confused. I want him removed tonight.”
Howard closed his eyes.
Eric opened the door and walked inside.
Brittany turned on him immediately.
“You better fix this.”
Eric almost laughed.
Not because it was funny.
Because he suddenly understood how small the room had become.
For years, he had mistaken fear for marriage. Mistaken obedience for peace. Mistaken silence for survival.
He picked up the dog bowl from the dining table.
Brittany watched him.
“What are you doing?”
Eric carried it to the trash can and dropped it inside.
The sound was final.
“I’m fixing it,” he said.
Brittany stared at him like she was seeing a stranger.
“No,” she whispered. “You don’t get to change now.”
May you like
Eric looked at the table where his father had sat with humiliation in front of him and forgiveness in his eyes.
“Yes,” he said. “I do.”
