“You saved yourself from one difficult conversation and gave the rest
of us 40 years of questions.”
At the door, he called my name.
“I thought I was saving the family.”
I stopped.
“Are you coming back tomorrow?”
My hand stayed on the handle.
“I don’t know.”
Then I left.
***
The next morning, I drove Sophie to school myself.
“Is this about Dolly?” she asked.
“Yes. Just not because you did anything wrong.”
After she went inside, I waited near the entrance.
Dolly appeared ten minutes later.
“Emelia.”
“I need five minutes.”
We started walking.
“How did it go with your father?”
“He admitted Laura came home in 1992.”
Dolly exhaled.
“He told me what he said to her too.”
“I’m sorry.”
“But Dad being wrong doesn’t make Laura right.”
Dolly looked at me.
“He was the reason she stayed away.”
“He was one reason.”
“Emelia…”
“No. I’m not asking you to defend her.”
That stopped her.
I turned to face her.
“Laura was 16 when she left. I can understand a 16-year-old making a terrible choice.”
Dolly’s eyes dropped.
“But she wasn’t 16 forever. She was 22 when she came back. She was 30, then 40.”
“So was I.”
“She thought you’d hate her.”
“She didn’t know that because she never asked.”
“Mom carries that.”
“As she should. Dad doesn’t get all the blame because he’s easier to be angry at.”
Dolly nodded.
“You’re right.”
“Does Laura know about the sweater?”
“She does now. She was furious.”
“Good.”
“She also cried.”
“That doesn’t fix anything.”
“No.”
“All night.”
I laughed once.
“That’s 40 years too late.”
Dolly reached
into her coat pocket.
“This is her number.”
I looked at the paper in her hand but didn’t take it.
“She wants you to call.”
“Of course she does.”
