Chloe nodded.
“I know.”
“He made excuses for you.”
She picked up the journal again.
“When you missed my tenth birthday, he told me your flight had been canceled.”
Her voice cracked.
“There was no flight.”
Elena looked down.
“When Maya asked why you didn’t come to her kindergarten graduation, he said you were sick.”
Maya wiped tears from her cheeks.
“You weren’t sick.”
Elena whispered:
“No.”
“He protected us from the truth.”
Chloe closed the journal.
“And apparently he protected you from us knowing it.”
Their father finally spoke.
“They were children.”
He looked at Elena.
“They didn’t need my anger.”
That sentence broke something in Chloe.
She walked toward him.
He looked startled.
She held out her hand.
“Come with me.”
“Where?”
“You’ll see.”
