Opened the screenshot.
Held it out.
Tessa did not take the device.
Her face lost color.
There.
Freya did not need a forensic analyst.
Still, she asked.
“Did you send this?”
Tessa looked toward the kitchen.
Freya’s voice sharpened.
“Look at me.”
Tessa did.
“Did you send this from my phone?”
Silence.
Freya felt something break.
“Tessa.”
Her sister closed her eyes.
“Yes.”
The apartment became completely quiet.
Not even traffic seemed to reach the windows.
Freya lowered the phone.
She had expected denial.
An explanation.
Confusion.
Anything that would give anger time to assemble.
The confession arrived too cleanly.
“Yes.”
Freya repeated it.
Tessa started crying.
Freya did not.
Not yet.
“You sent a breakup message to my boyfriend while I was asleep.”
“Yes.”
“You deleted it.”
“Yes.”
“You deleted his replies?”
“The first one.”
Freya stared.
“What about the morning one?”
Tessa looked sick.
“I blocked him before that.”
Freya’s mind moved.
“If he was blocked, his message wouldn’t have reached my phone.”
“No.”
“But it stayed on his.”
“Yes.”
“Did you unblock him later?”
“No.”
Freya stared.
“So he remained blocked for years.”
“Yes.”
“And I never knew.”
Tessa whispered:
“You never tried to call him.”
The sentence detonated.
Freya stepped backward.
“What?”
“I did not mean—”
“You are going to blame me?”
“No.”
“You send the message, block him, delete everything, and now we are discussing why I didn’t call?”
“No.”
Tessa covered her face.
“That came out wrong.”
Freya laughed.
It sounded almost violent.
“Interesting family tradition.”
“Freya.”
“Why?”
Tessa cried harder.
Freya did not care.
“Why?”
“Dad.”
“What about Dad?”
“He was sick.”
“Yes.”
“You were leaving.”
“I had not decided anything.”
“You had.”
“No.”
“You had the fellowship.”
“That was before the stroke.”
“You and Evan were already looking at apartments.”
Freya stared.
“How do you know that?”
“You told Mom’s friend Denise.”
“What?”
“At the barbecue.”
Freya remembered.
A month before Martin’s stroke.
She had shown Denise a listing.
Not committed.
Not even applied.
Tessa continued.
“Everyone knew.”
“No.”
“Everyone knew you were leaving.”
“I was considering moving for one year.”
“With him.”
“Yes.”
“And I knew exactly what would happen.”
Freya stopped.
There it was.
Not the hospital.
Not only.
Older.
“What would happen?”
Tessa’s face changed.
“You would go.”
“And?”
“I would stay.”
Freya stared.