He took her hand, feeling the warmth, the reassurance that she was still here. “I’m here because I need to be. You’re my sister.”

Tears glistened in her eyes, but she quickly blinked them away. “Brad… he thinks he can get away with it.”

“He won’t,” Max promised, the words a solemn vow. He wanted to say more, to offer some assurance that everything would be okay, but the words felt hollow. Instead, he sat with her, silently offering support that words couldn’t convey.