Calm has no shape to hide inside.

It made every word land like a fact instead of an accusation, and it left him nothing to push against, no wave to ride, only the slow arithmetic of a wife who was not upset because she was already finished.

“Of course,” I said.

“Please.

Take your seat.

I think it’s about time the three of us got acquainted.” She slid into 7B between us, and I fastened my seatbelt with a crisp, final click, the way you close a folder when the meeting is over and the decision is already made.