At the end of the evening, when the apartment was quiet again, I opened a letter Daniel had sent the previous week.

Marcus had looked it over first, at my request, and told me it contained no threats or demands.

Daniel wrote that he was living in a smaller place while he worked through the financial aftermath.

Sloan had moved out.

He was attending the required program and individual counseling.

He admitted that he had used money, guilt, and shame to control my choices.

He didn’t ask me to move back in.