Melissa lunged toward Brandon. He flinched back, bumping the table and knocking a glass of water onto the floor.
I caught Melissa’s wrist.
“Touch him again and I call the police,” I said. “Choose carefully.”
Her eyes blazed. “You always take everything first. Mom’s money. Now my brother.”
I pulled out my phone, opened the recording, and hit play.
Evelyn’s voice filled my apartment. One heart episode. It goes to your father. Melissa’s own voice followed, complaining about tuition and how unfair it was.
When it ended, Melissa’s face went slack.
“I did not want the kids hurt,” she whispered, dropping to her knees. “I swear. I thought you would eat them alone. Please. He is all I have left.”
Brandon stepped to my side. He looked at her for a long time, then spoke in a voice that sounded older than twelve.
“You stopped being my sister when you helped try to kill Kendall,” he said.
Melissa recoiled like he had struck her.
I handed her a thick envelope Gregory’s courier had dropped off.
“Civil suit,” I said. “Medical expenses. Emotional distress. Punitive damages.”
She clutched it with shaking hands. “Kendall, please.”
“Leave,” I said. “Do not come back here again.”
She stumbled out.
When the door shut, Brandon stood very still. Then he whispered, “Thank you.”
I pulled him into a hug, and he let his full weight rest against me. It was the first time since discharge that he stopped holding himself rigid.
Eight months later, we walked into Franklin County Courthouse together.
The building smelled like old paper and floor polish. Reporters clustered near the entrance, their whispers buzzing. Gregory guided us to our seats.
Evelyn walked in wearing a modest gray dress and a face arranged into something between penitence and fury. Dad looked smaller than I had ever seen him. Melissa kept her eyes down, shredding a tissue in her hands.
The state toxicologist explained the science in calm terms. He described how the agent could stop a heart quickly, how the dosing suggested intent. Gregory played my recording. Evelyn’s words filled the courtroom. Melissa’s justification followed. Dad’s silence hung in the background like guilt.
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