Eventually, friendship became love.
“Your father found out,” she continued. “And when he did, he made sure Daniel disappeared from my life.”
“How?”
“He threatened him. He threatened his family. He told Daniel that if he ever contacted me again, he would destroy everything he cared about.”
Daniel finally spoke.
“Your father had the money, the connections, and the power to do exactly what he promised.”
I looked between them.
“So you left her?”
“I thought I was protecting her.”
“By disappearing without an explanation?”
“I was young enough to believe that leaving was the only way to keep her safe.”
My mother let out a bitter laugh.
“That’s what he told himself. I waited for him for months. Then I spent years believing I hadn’t been worth fighting for.”
She wiped her eyes.
“But that’s not the worst part, Claire.”
My stomach tightened.
“What could possibly be worse than this?”
