By the time coffee was served, the shouting had subsided into a raw, exhausted honesty. They didn't solve everything. They didn't even decide on the house. But for the first time in years, the Sterlings weren't performing. They were just four people, bound by a history they couldn't escape, finally acknowledging that the mess was the only way through.

"You can't," Maya whispered. "It's the only place we're actually a family."