It was their faulty equipment that caused my miscarriage. So I was going to hold the yoga studio and the instructor accountable.
After the officers looked into it and gathered what they could, we learned something that didn't look good: ever since my accident, the yoga instructor had never come back to work.
As luck would have it, the yoga studio's surveillance camera had broken too. There was no physical evidence of how, exactly, I'd fallen.
The officers blamed me. Why hadn't I reported it right away?
I wanted to.
But in this city, the only family I had was off keeping her adopted sister company at a funeral for her dog.
I truly couldn't bring myself to tell them the truth. I could only chalk it up to bad luck.
"Here's what we'll do. We'll investigate as best we can. If anything turns up on your end, tell us right away."
With no other choice, my best friend and I left the police station.
We weren't divorced yet, but there was no way either of us was ever going back to that house.
We found a place to rent, and, dragging our still-unhealed bodies, we cleaned it, worn out.
Honestly, the place was small and damp, but to us it felt more like home than that house ever had.
At dinner, Bartholomew called from a different phone.
"Zelda, where did you go? Do you have any idea? The house got broken into!"
I said calmly, "Nobody broke in. I went through it. It's a little messy, but I only took what belongs to me. If something of yours is missing, go report it to the police. Don't shout at me."
"Zelda, what exactly do you want? I was gone for over ten days. I figured you'd have cooled off by now. What is it? Can't shake this crazy streak of yours this time?"
"Two women shacking up together never leads to anything good. Are the two of you just tired of having it easy?"
Every word of our conversation reached Meryl, sitting right beside me.
She was a woman of her word. She snatched the phone out of my hand and let Bartholomew have it. "Your parents had real foresight when they named you two. Truly heartless, both of you! You three inbred lovebirds can go enjoy your easy life together. My best friend and I can't afford it! Tell Walter this: the divorce is happening, no matter what. Whoever backs out is a bastard!"
After that tirade, Bartholomew didn't even get a chance to talk back before she hung up on him.
Then we blocked every account tied to Bartholomew, Walter, and Kate.
At eight the next morning, Meryl dragged me to the vanity and fussed over my makeup.
"It's a divorce, not a wedding. Is all this really necessary?"
"Of course it's necessary. Think about it. How long has it been since either of us wore makeup, ever since we got pregnant? Divorce is divorce, but a woman still has to do things for herself."
I admired Meryl's optimism. Honestly, if she hadn't been by my side through all of it, rubbing off on me, I don't know whether I could have made it through this.
We put on our makeup and slipped into our little dresses, and in us you could faintly see the shadows of those two showstopping campus queens we'd been back in school.
Just then, a knock came at the door.
We opened it, startled, and there at the threshold, to our surprise, stood Kate.
