I sat on the edge of the couch, head on her shoulder, staring at nothing. My body was still, but my mind? Loud,shattered and exhausted. It crept up on me slowly, like a wave that approaches you unsuspectingly before it hits you.

"I should have called my lawyer," I croaked, my throat parched. "That's what I should have done in the beginning. Why didn't I do that? How didn't I think of that?"

My mom's head had risen from the place she sat, turning to face me. Her eyes were steady, but ...