My 16-year-old daughter came home with her hood pulled over her face and said she’d done something I was going to hate. When I saw her swollen lips and learned my ex-husband’s new wife had paid for them, I called him, ready for war. His answer stopped me cold.
Zoe came through the garage at 4:20 on Saturday afternoon.
Hood up.
Chin tucked.
Straight toward the stairs.
“Zoe.”
She kept walking.
“Look at me.”
She stopped.
Slowly, she turned around.
I knew immediately.
Her lips were swollen, especially at the corners. Shiny. Too full.
Wrong in a way I couldn’t stop staring at.
“What did you do?”
“It’s not a big deal.”
“You’re 16.”
“Mom—”
“Who took you?”
She looked away.
“Everyone gets them.”
“I don’t care what everyone does. Who took you?”
Nobody answered.
Then Zoe said quietly, “Dad’s new wife gave me the money.”
For a second, I couldn’t speak.
Miranda was 29.
She’d been married to my ex-husband, Mark, for 14 months.
She’d never once contacted me about a doctor’s appointment, school form, or permission slip.
But apparently she’d found time to finance needles going into my daughter’s face.
“How much?”
Zoe hesitated.
“$280.”
I grabbed my phone.
“Mom, don’t.”
I was already walking outside.
