Walking back into the house mid-morning when hunger and coldness call me back along the beach. I hear arguing when I close the front door behind me. Distant voices raised and echoed along the hall alarmingly.

Olivia, my family housekeeper, smiles nervously, takes my jacket when she greets me, and tries not to look as though she is listening to the raised voices down the hall in a closed room. It’s hard not to hear it when two people scream at one another, and I throw her a concerned ...