The vet Brandan called was a drunk who owed Jerold a favor. He looked at Kasie's arm, grunted, and wrapped it in a cheap plaster cast. He didn't offer painkillers. He didn't even tell her to ice it.
Kasie sat on the living room sofa, the heavy cast resting on a pillow. Upstairs, she could hear Calista and Clemence talking, the occasional burst of laughter cutting through the floorboards. She was a ghost in her own home, haunting the margins.
The doorbell rang.
Brandan lumbered to the door. It was the mailman. He handed over a stack of envelopes and walked away. Brandan flipped through them, tossing bills onto the hallway table.
He stopped. He held a thick, cream-colored envelope. The paper was heavy, expensive. In the top left corner, embossed in gold, was a crest and the words: The Lagrange Institute.
Below the crest, typed in elegant font: Dr. Kasie Chavez.
Kasie's heart leaped. She sat up straight, ignoring the pull in her arm. It was here. The formal offer. The official paperwork. It was real.
"Give it to me," she said, standing up. "Brandan, that's mine."
Brandan held the envelope high, out of her reach. He stared at the name, then at her, his face hardening. "What is this?"
Footsteps on the stairs. Calista and Clemence descended, drawn by the commotion. Calista's eyes landed on the envelope, and for a split second, her mask slipped. Her nostrils flared.
"It's my job offer," Kasie said, her voice rising. "It's from a research institute in Europe. Brandan, please. Just give it to me."
Brandan looked at Clemence. "Hey, Foreman. Listen to this. She says this fancy place wants to hire her."
"Fabricating an offer from an institution of that caliber?" Clemence glanced at the envelope. He didn't even bother to look impressed. "Kasie, your desperation is becoming theatrical. Where did you even find a forger this good? It almost looks real."
"I didn't forge anything!" Kasie shouted, reaching for it. "Look it up! It's the top physics institute in the world!"
Calista stepped forward, her voice soft and pitying. "Kasie, please. I know you're hurting. But lying isn't going to fix anything. Clemence, don't be angry. She's just confused."
The gentle dismissal was worse than a slap. It sealed the verdict. Brandan's face twisted with disgust.
"I've had enough," he growled. "I'm sick of your lies. Sick of your drama."
He gripped the envelope with both hands. Kasie watched in horror as he tore it down the middle. The thick paper ripped with a loud crack.
"No!" she screamed.
He tore it again. And again. He shredded the letter, the contract, her future, into tiny pieces. He threw the confetti into the air. The white scraps fluttered down, landing on Kasie's hair, her shoulders, the dirty carpet.
"We don't need liars in this house," Brandan roared. He gathered the remaining scraps from the floor and stormed toward the front door. He yanked it open and threw the pieces into the large trash bin by the porch.
Kasie didn't think. She moved. She shoved past Brandan, ignoring the pain that shot through her arm as she bumped the doorframe. She ran out onto the porch, the cold air hitting her face.
She fell to her knees in front of the trash bin. It smelled of rotting food and stale beer. She didn't care. She plunged her good hand into the garbage, digging through coffee grounds and eggshells, desperate to find the pieces of her life.
