Monday had seemed far away when I first read Brady's note.
Now it was getting close.
I kept the house warm.
I kept checking on Victor.
And I kept reminding myself that the next conversation needed to happen without me losing control of what mattered.
I wasn't afraid of Brady in the ordinary sense.
I was afraid of how easily he might make me question what I'd seen.
We had been married long enough for me to know how our arguments could go.
He could take a simple question and turn it into a discussion about my attitude.
He could make an explanation sound like an answer.
And if I wasn't careful, I could end up defending the way I reacted instead of discussing what he'd actually done.
I had no intention of letting that happen this time.
Victor deserved better.
I deserved better, too.
That morning, I checked the records I'd kept since arriving.
The note was preserved.
The details about the condition of the house were written down.
The medication bottle remained set aside for professional examination.
The arrangements concerning Victor's trust were moving through the proper channels.
The camera was ready to document the encounter.
I had no way of knowing exactly what would happen when Brady and Elaine returned.
I could only make sure I was prepared to listen and ask questions.
Victor was awake when I went into the living room.
He looked toward me.
“Are they coming today?”
“Your note said Monday.”
He nodded.
“They'll probably expect dinner.”
I looked at him.
“Do you want me to prepare anything?”
He considered the question.
“Not for them.”
I understood.
I wasn't going to cook a meal to make their return feel comfortable.
There was no reason to pretend this was an ordinary family gathering.
I could still make sure Victor had what he needed.
That was enough.
I sat beside him for a while.
He looked thinner than I remembered, and his illness had clearly taken a great deal from him.
But his eyes were steady.
“You're nervous,” he said.
“A little.”
“Good.”
I gave him a questioning look.
He adjusted the blanket.
“It means you understand this matters.”
I almost smiled.
That sounded like something a Marine would say.
Then his expression became serious.
“Don't let them turn it into a fight between you and them.”
“I won't.”
“This isn't about who shouts the loudest.”
“I know.”
He looked at me for another moment.
“Then we're ready.”
I wished I felt as certain as he sounded.
Later, I checked the kitchen.
The island was clear.
The bananas were gone.
The groceries had been put away.
Brady's note was no longer sitting in the open where anyone could casually pick it up and dismiss it.
I had kept it safe.
I wanted the record to remain intact.
I also wanted to remember that the note was only one part of the situation.
The house itself had told me something.
Victor's condition had told me something.
The medication bottle had raised a question that still needed an answer.
And the trust was something Victor had chosen to disclose because he wanted to protect his future.
None of those things should be confused with the others.
I couldn't use the trust to prove that Elaine had mishandled his medication.
I couldn't use the bottle to establish what Brady had known.
I couldn't assume that the note explained every conversation that had happened before the cruise.
I could ask.
I could document.
I could let the evidence speak.
That was the plan.
As the afternoon passed, I found myself listening for cars.
I tried not to.
Every time I heard a vehicle slow outside, I looked toward the window.
Then I reminded myself that I had no reason to rush the encounter.
Brady and Elaine would return when they returned.
I couldn't control that.
I could control how I responded.
Victor rested for a while.
I stayed nearby.
When he woke, he asked whether I was still there.
“Yes.”
“Good.”
He closed his eyes again.
I thought about how much had changed in a few days.
Before Thanksgiving, I'd believed that whatever happened inside our family could be worked out through conversation.
I'd believed that love and loyalty were enough to make people take responsibility.
Now I understood that conversation only mattered if people were willing to tell the truth.
I didn't know whether Brady would be willing.
I didn't know whether Elaine would admit anything.
I didn't even know whether either of them understood how serious the situation had become.
But I wasn't going to decide their answers for them.
I would give them the opportunity to speak.
I would also make sure Victor's voice wasn't pushed aside.
That evening, I checked the camera one last time.
Then I returned to the living room.
Victor looked at me.
“Whatever happens, Jenna, don't forget what you found.”
I sat beside him.
“I won't.”
He nodded.
Neither of us said anything else.
The house remained warm.
The front door remained closed.
And I waited for the people who had left Victor behind to come home.
Click here to continue reading: PART 14: I Could Hear the Cruise Ending in My Own Head, but I Had No Idea Whether Brady Would Arrive Ready to Explain Himself or Ready to Blame Me
I Thought I Was Coming Home for Thanksgiving, Until the Cold Inside That House Told Me Something Was Terribly Wrong
Part 13 of 20
