Lily didn’t understand all of it.
She only asked, “Do I get to call you Grandma now?”
Mom cried.
“Yes.”
I watched carefully.
Forgiveness wasn’t automatic.
Trust would take longer.
But the rules had changed.
Not because Lily owned a house.
Because someone had finally made it impossible for my mother to pretend cruelty was just “family standards.”
A year later, we celebrated Dad’s birthday again.
Smaller table.
Simpler dinner.
Lily handed Mom another drawing.
This time, Mom placed it in the center of the table.
Ethan looked at me.
