I remained standing.
« No. I have spent weeks wondering whether you were safe. You stopped answering my calls. He has a key to your house. You haven’t been outside, and your messages don’t even sound like you. »
« They weren’t mine, » she said.
My stomach dropped.
Alex raised both hands. « She asked me to send them. »
« Why? »
« Because I was ashamed, » Dorothy replied.
Her eyes lowered to her swollen ankle.
A month earlier, the delivery Alex brought to her had contained adult incontinence supplies. Dorothy had ordered them after several accidents, but she had been too embarrassed to tell me that her health was changing.
« When Alex arrived, the box had split open, » she explained. « Everything fell onto the porch. »
