Wednesday morning arrived without Victoria in the house.

Elena woke to the sound of the front door and the soft rattle of Rosa’s caddy being wheeled across the entryway tile. For a few seconds she lay still and tried to remember why the ordinary sound made her stomach drop so hard. Then the previous day landed all over again—the bag, the phone, the bruises, the word yes, the word love, the sound of Victoria’s car driving away—and the drop turned into a full free-fall.

She sat up too fast. Marcus was already awake beside her in the master bed. They had not discussed sleeping there. They had simply ended up...