Chapter 14 - DIANE’S REAL APOLOGYDiane’s first apology was useless.
I’m sorry the children misunderstood my discipline.
Rejected.
Second:
I’m sorry Claire overreacted to a difficult evening.
Worse.
Months passed.
Therapy.
Legal consequences.
Distance.
Then a new letter arrived.
Lily, I threw food in your face because I was angry about something you could not understand and did not cause.
I stopped.
Better.
I called you a thief because your existence reminded me of Caroline and the family history I had hidden. You had stolen nothing.
Then:
I took food away from you to make you afraid of disobeying me. That was cruel.
Accurate.
Ethan, I threatened you because I knew you wanted to protect your sister. I used your love for her against you.
I had to put the letter down.
Finally:
Ryan, I raised you and loved you, but I also treated that love as permission to control your identity. It was not.
No excuse.
Then:
Claire, you were right to remove me from the house.
That mattered.
The children did not read it immediately.
Ethan chose to when he was ten.
Lily waited until twelve.
May you like
No forced forgiveness.
No reunion as prize.
