I know. Then some part of you wants somebody else to know. Maya stared at him for a long moment. Neither moved. Then Maya turned toward Rachel.
You asked why I didn't stop Lauren. Rachel nodded. Maya held up the bracelet. This is why. Rachel looked at the disc.
23 and zero. Maya nodded. I started competing after I turned 18. Rachel's face changed slightly. Competing in what?
Karate dot a beat. Then Maya said it plainly. I'm a black belt. Rachel stared. Maya continued before she could respond.
I fought 23 adult matches. She looked down at the number again. I won all of them. Rachel's mouth opened. Then closed.
Daniel crossed his arms. Maya looked toward the framed photographs on the wall. One of them showed her at 18 standing on a competition floor in white gear with a metal around her neck. Another showed Daniel beside her. Another showed Sandra Carter, 45 in the last photograph taken before her death, smiling with both hands on Maya's shoulders after a regional final.
Rachel stood and moved closer to the wall. You were undefeated. Yes, national level. Maya nodded. My last title was adult nationals.
Rachel turned. Maya, why didn't you ever tell me? Because I stopped. Why? The question emptied the room.
Maya looked at Daniel. Daniel looked back. He did not rescue her. That was another thing he had always understood. Some truths had to be spoken by the person carrying them.
Maya walked toward the center of the studio. The old floor creaked beneath her shoes. My last match was 7 months ago. Daniel's eyes lowered. Rachel sat again.
Maya kept going. My opponent was Tessa Reed. She was 24. The name still had weight. Tessa was good, better than most people I had fought.
Fast, patient, she made me work for everything. Maya rubbed the edge of the bronze disc. It was late in the match. We both moved at the same time. Her voice tightened.
It was legal. Everybody said that afterward, Daniel said softly. Because it was. Maya continued. I redirected her.
She landed wrong. No graphic detail. She did not need one. The sound was enough in her memory. The sudden stillness.
Officials running in. Tessa not getting up right away. Medical staff calling for space. I remember looking down and realizing I knew exactly what I had done technically. Maya's breathing changed.