Chapter 4 - The Version She Told First
I read the message twice.
Mom watched my face.
“You called Aunt Celia?”
“I needed someone to talk to.”
“You told her Mia attacked you?”
“She shoved past me yesterday.”
“After you took her phone?”
“She was being disrespectful.”
I looked at the screen again.
Another message arrived.
Your mother is frightened. Don’t let your wife destroy this family.
Mia lay in a hospital bed apologizing for a dirty kitchen.
My mother was already building a story in which she needed protection.
I called Celia.
She answered before the second ring.
“Rafael, I know you’re upset, but—”
“Mia is in the hospital.”
Silence.
“She collapsed. Mom sat beside her and kept eating.”
“That can’t be right.”
“I found her myself.”
“Your mother said Mia became hysterical.”
“She was unconscious.”
Mom held out her hand.
“Let me speak to my sister.”
I moved away.
“Celia, I’m taking Mom back to her apartment. You can meet her there.”
“You need to calm down.”
“I need you to stop repeating something you didn’t witness.”
I ended the call before she could answer.
Ben stood downstairs holding Nico against his shoulder.
One look at my face made him lower his voice.
“Everything okay?”
“No. But thank you for staying.”
Mom came down carrying her purse.
“I’ll pack my own things.”
“Fine.”
She paused beside Nico.
“Give Grandma a kiss.”
Ben looked at me.
“Not tonight,” I said.
Her mouth opened.
Then she noticed Ben was still watching.
The drive to her apartment took twenty minutes.
She spent fifteen of them explaining how Mia misunderstood her.
At the curb, she tried a different voice.
“Raf. You know I love you.”
“I know you say you do.”
“That’s a terrible thing to say to your mother.”
“What should I say to my wife?”
She got out without answering.
I returned to the hospital with Nico after arranging the visit with the nurse.
Mia reached for him immediately.
When she finished feeding him, she looked at the door.
“Where’s your mom?”
“At her apartment.”
“You made her leave?”
“Yes.”
Her fingers tightened around the blanket.
“Is she angry?”
“That isn’t your problem.”
Mia gave me a tired, sad look.
“It becomes my problem, Rafael.”
I opened my mouth to reassure her.
Then I stopped.
She had trusted reassurance before.
Instead, I placed her phone beside her.
“I found the recordings. I listened to three.”
She went completely still.
“Not the last one?”
“No.”
May you like
Her eyes closed.
“That’s the one I need you to hear.”
