“You wired me into a seat belt.”
Garrett looked away.
“It wasn’t supposed to—”
I froze.
“What?”
He stopped.
Agent Brooks leaned slightly forward.
“Finish that sentence.”
Garrett’s attorney whispered, “Do not speak.”
Garrett closed his mouth.
I stood.
“I have all the answer I need.”
He looked up.
“Rosalind.”
I turned.
“You made me milk every night.”
He went still.
That one landed differently.
His face changed.
I saw guilt.
Real guilt.
Not for the river.
For being exposed.
I walked out.
Tobias appeared publicly three days later.
That became a separate storm.
Reporters surrounded Mercer Marine.
People stared when he walked.
Some employees cried.
Others looked betrayed.
I understood both.
He gave one statement.
“My disability was genuine after the accident.”
“My recovery was kept private because I believed my family remained in danger.”
“I regret the pain that secrecy caused.”
“That is all I can say while the investigation continues.”
Then he walked inside.
No wheelchair.
No cane.
Just my brother.
For the first time in fifteen years.
I watched from the office window.
“Feels strange?” I asked.
He nodded.
