The advantage belongs to the one who sees clearly and reveals nothing.

If I exploded now, I would feel better for thirty seconds, and then my mother and sister would go on the defensive, would clean up, would hide records, would coach their story, and I would have surrendered the only weapon I actually had, which was their belief that I was still the naive boy who had shipped out four years ago.

So I did the hardest thing I have ever done.

Harder than anything overseas.

I looked at the two women who had done this to my wife, and I forced a warm, easy smile onto my face, and I made my voice calm.

I let them believe they were safe.