Delphine was not shouting anymore. Her voice came out thin and cracked, nothing like the furious messages. “Joanna, please listen. My phone died, so I borrowed my neighbor’s. I am sitting in my car outside our house with all five kids.” I stood so fast my wine tipped across the counter. “Why are you in the car?” A long, shaky breath crackled through the speaker.

“Kyle changed the locks this morning. He moved every dollar out of our savings three weeks ago. There was never going to be a ski trip, Joanna. I needed Christmas Eve to meet a lawyer, and Mom and Dad knew everything.” The room tilted. In the background, the baby began to scream, and a car door slammed somewhere close. Then Delphine whispered, “He’s walking down the driveway right now, and he’s holding something.”