Forty-two minutes. That's how long it takes to destroy a family. To potentially scar a child for the rest of her life.

I check my watch again as I pull into our driveway, unable to process how quickly everything spiraled out of control. My hands are still trembling on the steering wheel, and I swear I can taste copper on my lips no matter how many times I wipe my mouth.

Sitting in the car, I try to compose myself. Chris can't see me like this, shaken, haunted by the image of that little girl's terrified face. The same little girl who'd been bullying him. What had I expected to accomplish by confronting her family?

Certainly not... that.

When I finally step inside the house, my movements feel mechanical, disconnected from my body. The familiar creak of our front door sounds alien to my ears.

"Seth?" Evelyn appears from the kitchen, drying her hands on a dish towel. "How'd it go?"

I must look as shell-shocked as I feel because her expression immediately shifts from curiosity to concern. Before she can ask more questions, I spot Chris at the dining table, pencil in hand, hunched over what looks like math problems. My heart constricts painfully in my chest.

Without answering Evelyn, I walk straight to my little brother. He looks up, eyes wide and questioning. I don't say anything, I can't find the words. Instead, I pull him into a tight hug, wrapping my arms around his small frame like I'm afraid he might disappear.

"Whoa!" Chris squeaks in surprise, his homework crushed between us. "What's this for?"

I hold him tighter, thinking of Martha Reed's wailing, of blood spattering across linoleum, of Rose's unhinged rage. Chris squirms a little in my grip, but I can't let go yet.

"Seth, you're squishing me," he protests, his voice muffled against my chest.

"Sorry," I mumble, finally loosening my hold but keeping my hands on his shoulders. I look into his face—innocent, untouched by the violence I just witnessed. "I just... I took care of it, okay? That girl won't ever bother you again.”

"Really?" Chris's eyes go wide, a mixture of relief and disbelief washing over his face.

"Yeah, buddy," I say, my voice wavering slightly. I swallow hard, trying to push down the lump in my throat. "But Chris, if you ever see Martha again, please be nice to her."

His brow furrows in confusion. "Be nice? To the girl who pushed me?" His indignation is so pure, so innocent compared to what I just witnessed.

I squeeze his shoulders gently. "I think her life was changed today, probably for the worse." The words taste ashy in my mouth, images of Rose's bloodied knuckles flashing through my mind.

Chris tilts his head, studying my face with that perceptive look kids sometimes get. "What happened, Seth?"

Before I can fumble for an answer, I feel Evelyn's presence behind me. Her sharp intake of breath makes me turn.

"Is that blood?" Evelyn's voice is barely above a whisper as she reaches out, her thumb gently wiping something from my cheek. She pulls it back, showing me the smear of crimson. Rose must have transferred it when she kissed me.

Evelyn's eyes harden as she looks from the blood to my face. "Chris, sweetie," she says, her voice carefully controlled, "we'll be right back, okay? Keep working on those problems."

Her hand clamps around my wrist with surprising strength as she pulls me toward my bedroom. The door clicks shut behind us, and she turns to face me, arms crossed tightly over her chest.

"What happened?" The question hangs between us like a physical thing.

I swallow hard, the lump in my throat making it difficult to speak. Her question hangs in the air, demanding an answer I'm not sure how to give.

"Allie..." I start, my voice cracking. "She tried to use her sister's bullying as leverage. She basically said she'd only make Martha stop if I..."

"If you what?" Evelyn's face transforms, her eyes widening with dawning horror. "Seth, did she rape you?"

"She didn't have the opportunity," I say, my voice hollow as the memory of violence replays in my mind.

Something dark passes over Evelyn's face, rage unlike anything I've ever seen from her. Her hands clench into fists at her sides, knuckles whitening.

"If that woman tried anything with you, I swear I will kill her myself," she hisses, practically vibrating with fury.

I shake my head, running a hand through my hair. "It's worse than that. Rose followed me there and... she completely lost it. She attacked Allie. Beat her so badly I…" My voice breaks. "I don't even know if she's still alive."

Evelyn freezes, her expression shifting from rage to shock. "What?"

"The twins were there." I sink onto my bed, the weight of what happened crushing down on me. "Rose just... snapped. She was like an animal.”

Evelyn sits beside me, her body rigid. "Did anyone see you?"

"Martha did. Allie's little sister." I press the heels of my hands against my eyes, trying to block out the image of that terrified child. "She was screaming the whole time. She's just a kid, Evelyn. A little kid who saw her sister getting beaten half to death."

Evelyn's face softens unexpectedly, her hand coming to rest on my shoulder. "Maybe the twins aren't entirely what I thought they were."

I look up at her in disbelief. After everything I just told her, that's her takeaway?

"What are you talking about? Rose nearly killed someone today. In front of a child." I run my hands through my hair, tugging at the roots. "I'm worried about her. What if she gets arrested? What if someone saw her?"

"Did Rose get hurt?" Evelyn asks, surprising me with the concern in her voice.

"No, she didn't get hurt." I shake my head, trying to make sense of Evelyn's reaction. "But what if she's scared now? What if she regrets what she did? She was completely out of control."

Evelyn studies my face for a moment, her expression unreadable. "What did Lilly say about all this?"

"She said she'd handle it. That no one would get hurt and no one would press charges." I stand up and pace the small confines of my bedroom, too anxious to stay still. "But how can she possibly fix this? We're talking about assault, maybe attempted murder."

Evelyn's face softens as she looks at me, her eyes filled with a strange mix of concern and something else I can't quite place.

"Seth," she says carefully, "if this woman tried to coerce you into sex, you need to understand that the law would likely be on your side, not hers."

"What?" I stop pacing, caught off guard by this sudden shift in conversation.

"Men are protected under the law now," she explains, her voice gentler than I've ever heard it. "Sexual assault against men is taken very seriously. Even attempted coercion, like what you described, would be enough for charges."

"Oh." I rub the back of my neck, processing this information. "I guess that makes sense."

It's strange how something so fundamental about this world still catches me off guard sometimes.

Evelyn's expression shifts, her brow furrowing as she leans closer to me. "I understand you care about Rose, but she probably does have a violent streak. You really need to be careful around her. What happened today wasn't normal, Seth."

"I'm not worried about that," I say, shaking my head. The image of Rose's bloodied knuckles flashes through my mind, but somehow it doesn't scare me the way it should. "She was protecting me. She's very kind when we're alone."

Evelyn sighs, her eyes searching mine with an intensity that makes me uncomfortable. "I'm just saying... You never know. People can hide their true nature, especially from those they claim to love."

Her words hang in the air between us, but they don't land the way she intends. Instead of feeling warned, I feel defensive of Rose. Yes, what she did was extreme, terrifying even, but it came from a place of fierce protection for me.

Before I can respond to Evelyn's warning, the door creaks open. Chris peeks his head in, his small face pinched with worry. His eyes are wide, searching mine with that intuitive perception only children seem to possess.

"Seth?" he asks quietly, clutching the doorframe. "Did Martha hurt you?"

The innocent question knocks the wind out of me. I stare at my little brother, taking in his furrowed brow. He thinks the bully hurt me. The irony is almost too much to bear.

"No, buddy," I manage, kneeling down to his level. "Martha didn't hurt me at all."

Chris steps fully into the room, fidgeting with the hem of his t-shirt. "Then why do you look so sad? And why is there blood on your face?"

I glance at Evelyn, who gives me a subtle nod before slipping out of the room, closing the door softly behind her. She's giving us space, understanding this is something I need to handle alone.

"It's complicated," I say, guiding Chris to sit beside me on the bed. "Sometimes when grown-ups try to fix problems, they make bigger ones."

Chris's face falls, and he looks at me with wide, worried eyes. "Are you okay?" he asks softly. "Maybe Mom can help us if something bad happened."

I shake my head quickly. "No, don't worry. I'm fine, okay? Really." The last thing I need is to drag Mom into this mess.

Chris nods, but I can tell he's not entirely convinced. His little shoulders are still tense, his eyes searching my face for clues about what really happened.

"Listen," I say, my voice dropping to a serious tone. "I wasn't joking earlier, Chris. If you see Martha acting strangely starting tomorrow, you don't have to talk to her or anything, but please be kind to her, okay?"

He considers this for a moment, his brow furrowed in that way that makes him look so much older than nine. Finally, he nods. "Okay, I'll be nice to her," he agrees, then adds with a flash of his usual spirit, "But if she pushes me again, I'm going to be mad at you."

I can't help but laugh, relief washing through me at this glimpse of my normal little brother. "That's fair," I tell him, ruffling his hair.

My phone buzzes. With a sigh, I pull it out and check the screen. Three messages from Lilly.

"Everything is taken care of. Don't worry."

"No police. No charges No problems."

"We’ll talk tomorrow."

I text her back swiftly.

“Is Rose okay?”

Not even a second goes by, and Lilly responds.

“Yes.”

One word, simple and easy to understand.

‘Good.’