But it was enough to hire a good lawyer. Enough to fight back. Enough to make sure she wasn’t walking into court unprotected. Her chest loosened for the first time that day. “I can’t do this alone,” she said. “But I don’t have to walk in blind.”
That was when her grandmother stood and went to the bedroom. She returned with an envelope, worn at the edges. “I never spent what you sent me,” she said calmly. “I didn’t need it. I just kept it.” Alexis looked up, stunned. “All of it?” Her grandmother nodded. “Every bit.”