ice called out from inside, hesitant, older

rough, love. Are yo

from the passenger seat, concern etched into her weathered face, her

already full of them. Just two strangers, worrie

ed, though her voice be

ion, the window rose again and the car pulled slowly away, le

f to keep walking, though she had no real destination in mind. Only distance. Only the

*

on her bed with Daniel's phone resting in her lap, scrolling through months of old message

nstead, she had simply waited until Daniel fell asleep beside her one evening, worn o

l he'd once thought romantic, back when the two of them were still together, a

fitting, somehow, using Elena's own

heir relationship had still been intact - soft, affectionate texts full of the

sting nothing else. The words themselves needed no alteration.

the diff

er with cash for exactly this purpose, she sent herself a series of messages disguised as

nd who worked in telecommunication, and a great deal of patien

hadn't lived through every privat

t have used judging a piece of art, searching for any fla

d it and slipped back beneath the covers beside him, careful

ment where his phone buzzed loudly enough to draw his attention while she stood nearby, watching

'd never meant to look, that she'd only noticed by accident, that she was so sorry to be the on

almost

to expose everything, when the greatest number of witnesses would be present, when her father's prote

eturn home late from her shift, tired and unguarded, w

ion, adjusting the tremble in her voice until it sounded exactly right - wou

ing it so he alone could see the screen clearly, ensuring nobody else

ed, Victoria felt nothing

*

at curled against Daniel on the sofa, allowing herself exactly t

ittle left to wipe, and turned toward

to end like this,

e Richard stood by the fireplace still visibly shaken by his own fury, starin

ctoria had made

iet, his hands clasped between his kn

flicker of doubt, and felt a small twist of unease

upposed betrayal. Troubled

resting a gentle h

alright?"

way she looked at me. Like she genuinel

ion didn't change. "People lie very convincingly

uppo

he message

his face, exhausted. "I just... I've known

le, the kind designed to make him fe

you the truth because I love you, and because I couldn't keep something li

bt had been building in his expression softened, gui

rry. I shouldn't be questioning you afte

g the flicker of relief in her eyes, and allowe

is shoulders now that the confrontation had ended, now that his househo

e right thing,"

taring towards the front door, towards

nally murmured, though her voice la

threatening to surface, and allowed herself a private, s

was hers completely, and nobody in

and made her way upstairs to her old childhood bedroom, the on

the curtain aside just enough to look down at the empty street below,

eet was

handbag, intending to delete the last of the incriminating messages between herself and the fr

e notification greeted her, from a number sh

tonight - and I have every piece of

slipped from her fingers. She read the message again, certa

w

And whoever they were, they had just made i