Brittany tried to snatch the phone away but the message had already been read.
In that desperate movement I understood something important.
The card and the money were not even the worst part.
The real blow to my son had not fallen yet.
Tyler did not shout. Instead he stood there staring at Brittany as if he were meeting a stranger.
“Who is Chris?” he repeated slowly.
She pressed the phone against her chest and answered that he was only a coworker from her job, yet Tyler reminded her that she had been complaining for months about that same job and claiming she planned to quit.
Officer Pierce and Megan remained silent observers while Brittany searched the room for someone who might defend her. When she realized there was no ally she changed her tone and admitted that she had made mistakes.
“I got involved in online betting,” she confessed. “At first I thought I could win back the money I lost but the debts kept growing.”
Tyler closed his eyes as if the explanation physically hurt him.