Then I backed away and returned to the car.
Roy was waiting beside it.
He smiled when he saw me, but the expression disappeared as soon as he looked at my face.
“Vanessa? What’s wrong?”
“Your mother isn’t being manipulated by Tessa.”
I showed him the recording.
He listened without moving.
When Margaret’s voice filled the car, his face went pale.
When he heard her explain the plan, he closed his eyes.
And when she said she had expected him to come running back to her after I was gone, he turned his head toward the window.
For a long time, he didn’t speak.
Finally, he whispered, “She really did this?”
I took his hand.
“I wish I were wrong.”
He pulled away gently, opened the car door, and stepped outside.
“Where are you going?” I asked.
“Back inside.”
“Roy, you don’t have to—”
“Yes, I do.”
His voice was shaking, but his decision was clear.
