Aria's POV
I stared at the page. The words blurred together. I blinked hard, trying to make them rearrange themselves into something else. Something that wasn't this.
No.
My fingers tightened on the paper, crumpling the edge.
This isn't real.
"Aria," Joshua started.
"It's fake, isn't it?" My voice came out thin. Foreign. "You're faking a diagnosis. For early release paperwork. Right?"
Joshua stared at the floor for a long, terrible moment. When he finally looked up, his eyes were shattered.
"It's real."
The word hit me like a physical blow.
"No." My voice cracked. "No. Last visit, he was fine. He told us it was just a cold!"
"The prison called a while back." Joshua's voice stayed even, but I could hear the strain holding it together. "He'd been sick for months. Never complained.
