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Chapter: A House Divided
Kate
The living room felt heavier than usual, like the walls had swallowed all the air. Aria sat curled in Alex’s mother’s lap, clutching her broken doll with trembling fingers. Her cheeks were blotchy from crying. Across the room, Helen’s two boys stood like nervous little soldiers. Max, just eight, looked everywhere but at me.
Helen gently urged him, “Max, sweetheart, just tell everyone what you told me in the kitchen, okay? Don’t be scared.”
Max’s voice was small, barely above a whisper. “Emma and Aria were fighting… about whose doll was prettier. I told them we should play instead. We started taking turns on the slide. But Emma accidentally stepped on Aria’s doll… Aria got really mad. I told them not to fight… it was Emma’s turn on the slide, then Aria’s
