He stopped.
“After what? After you saw which way I was going?”
He put his face in his hands.
His words came muffled and fast.
“When you told me you’d seen a lawyer, I panicked. I read online about what happens in divorces, and people take everything, and I thought if I just put some of it somewhere safe—”
“I hadn’t asked for anything, Daniel.”
“I didn’t know that.”
“You could have asked.”
Somewhere outside, a television roared.
Muffled voices began counting backward.
Ten.
Nine.
Eight.
“I hired a lawyer to understand my rights,” I said over the countdown. “You hired panic. Do you see the difference?”
Seven.
Six.
“I see it,” he whispered.
Five.
Four.
