THE living room was tense, every sound exaggerated in the heavy silence that had suddenly fallen. Adrian, now standing by the couch where Hazel had just stepped back, looked at Amelia with a mixture of caution and defiance. The kids, previously laughing and playing, now huddled together on the edge of the sofa, their eyes wide and uncertain, sensing the storm brewing between their parents.

Amelia’s arms were crossed tightly over her chest, and her eyes were sharp, her voice slicing through the air.

“You have some nerve showing up here today, Adrian.”

Adrian raised his hands slightly in a calming gesture, though his jaw remained firm.

“Amelia, it is...