“I’m sorry, sweetheart.”
“For what?”
“For not telling you sooner. I keep wondering whether I could have gone to the house and saved it.”
I shook my head.
“You couldn’t have known what he’d do.”
But Dad looked unconvinced.
***
When the hearing resumed, Claire asked my father questions about the calls.
Brian’s attorney objected repeatedly.
The judge limited the questioning to facts she considered relevant.
Dad answered calmly.
He explained the voicemail.
The second conversation.
The proposed bargain.
His refusal.
And Brian’s remark that perhaps nobody would get the mirror.
He didn’t exaggerate.
He didn’t insult Brian.
He simply told the truth.
Then Claire displayed one final photograph.
My grandmother’s shattered mirror.
The walnut frame.
The broken carved rose.
The glass scattered across the living room floor.
Judge Alvarez studied the image for a long time.
Then Claire addressed the financial hardship claim.
