Page 103 of Madden

Abel presses play to when Hanna snatches her phone out of Brielle’s hand and lifts it to her ear.

I grit my teeth, recalling this part of our conversation.

“I don’t want to replay this, man.” I shake my head, knowing what’s about to come next.

He fast-forwards past the part where she slams the vase against Brielle’s head. She’s lying on the floor in a pile of glass, leftover from where the built-in shelves shattered all over the floor amongst the shards from the broken vase.

“Are you fuckin’ crazy, Hanna?” the unknown man shouts. “What did you do that for? All this because you’re jealous some man who doesn’t even want you chose her?”

She turns her cold gaze on him. “You shut the fuck up.”

“No, you shut up! Look at yourself. You think he isn’t gonna find out you’re lying, and that kid isn’t even his?”

“I said shut up. Let’s go, the cops are gonna be here any minute.”

She shoves him, pushing him toward the doorway out of the kitchen, leaving Brielle motionless on the floor.

My stomach drops, and Abel hits pause, turning in his chair to stare up at me.

“She was lying all along.”

I shake my head, dragging my hands through my hair, pulling on the strands. It doesn’t help relieve any of the tension coiling in my body. If anything, it only makes the headache I feel coming on worse.

“Why the fuck would she lie about something like this?”

Abel shakes his head because he’s at a loss too.

“She was trying to get back at you for choosing Brielle over her,” Kyla pipes in from the doorway.

There’s anger on her face, no doubt over the fact Hanna used a child as a pawn to hurt me and drive a wedge between me and Brielle.

Too bad Brielle took care of that all on her own.

“She was probably doing it to hurt you and your relationship. Maybe she didn’t think you’d demand a paternity test or you’d just pay her off to get her to shut up.”

“Well, we have the proof we need now. It’s on video, along with the footage proving the window wasn’t broken by me in a fit of rage.”

Kyla nods, taking a step toward me, and wraps her arm around my waist.

“I’m sorry you’re going through this,” she mumbles against my chest. I return the hug, slipping mine around her shoulders.

“Me too,” I whisper.

She steps back, releasing my hold, and we turn back to Abel.

“I’ll take care of sorting through the footage to figure out what was taken and get this over to the police to make sure they recover it all.”

“Thanks, man. I appreciate it, both of you.”

I duck my head and slip out the door. Kyla shouts my name down the hall, chasing after me.

I’m waiting for her to ask me when she—

“How are you handling everything?” she probes.

I knew it was coming. I don’t answer immediately, letting her follow me into the kitchen.

We finally got the new window installed, but they left a bunch of other shit damaged in their wake.