"For once, I hung up first."
Riley's text sat on Silver's screen like a warning she couldn't ignore.
Your mother called mine. Asked about Eli's background.
Silver stared at it until the words blurred. Her mother was digging into Eli's life now. Investigating him like he was some kind of threat to the Harrington legacy instead of just a guy who'd been kind to her.
The phone rang again. Leona. Again.
Silver had never hung up on her mother before. Even when Leona's tone sliced thin as ice, even when every word came wrapped in expectation and disappointment. Even when she wanted to scream or throw the phone across the room, she'd always stayed on the line. Always taken it.
But tonight, staring at her mother's name flashing across the screen, something shifted.
Her thumb trembled once over the red button. Then she pressed it.
End call.
Silence filled the dorm.
Not the kind that comforts. The kind that hisses, You'll regret this.
