“This call is between you and me.

You will never pay for services in our home again.

You will never come between my wife and me during a crisis.

If you can’t accept those boundaries, you won’t be welcome in this house.”

“Ethan Donnelly, after everything I’ve sacrificed for you!” Sylvia shouted, her voice cracking with bitter disbelief.

“Goodbye, Mom,” Ethan said.

He pressed his thumb on the red icon and ended the call.

He picked up the phone, held the power button down until the screen went completely dark, and laid it face down on the table next to June’s medical logbook.