I looked at the date again.
Daniel had begun preparing for this long before Sarah ever arrived at my door.
And Jenna had been part of his plan, even if she hadn’t understood every detail.
I reached for Sarah’s hand.
“I’m sorry.”
She shook her head.
“I think I spent years believing that if I loved my daughter enough, I could protect her from every bad decision.”
She took a trembling breath.
“Now I understand that love can’t make someone honest. It can’t make them kind. And it can’t make them choose the right thing.”
“No,” I said softly. “But it can leave the door open when they’re finally ready to change.”
Sarah looked at me.
Then she smiled sadly.
“You really do have an answer for everything.”
“Not everything.”
“What’s the answer to this?”
I lifted her hand and kissed her knuckles.
“We deal with what’s true. We stop pretending we can control what isn’t. And tomorrow, if you want, I’ll make you breakfast.”
