By the seventh, he claimed to be ill and alone.

By the tenth, he warned that if Ruth talked about their finances, she would regret the consequences.

I saved them all.

Not because I wanted revenge.

Because vague threats can sound less convincing after a person has had time to explain them away.

A recording has a way of staying the same.

Ruth listened to one message and asked me to stop.

“He’ll say he didn’t mean it.”