CHAPTER 12: A Little Girl Names the Monster

Lily spoke only after Vivienne stopped speaking.
Her voice was small, but the room had learned to listen to small things too late.
'She said Mommy would be ashamed of me,' Lily whispered.
Sebastian turned so sharply that one of the guards moved out of instinct.
Elena held Lily's shoulders and did not interrupt. Some truths had to come from the person who survived them, even when that person was still young enough to sleep with a bear.
'She said if I cried at the wedding, she would send me where children learn manners.'
Vivienne's face went white beneath the chandelier.
'She is confused.'
Lily shook her head.
Tears slipped down her cheeks, but she did not hide this time.
'Miss Elena told me Mommy would never be ashamed I missed her.'
Sebastian closed his eyes once.
There were punishments he could deliver with a phone call. There were men who would mistake his grief for permission to be brutal on his behalf. He chose none of that in front of his daughter.
Instead, he opened his eyes and said, 'Vivienne, you will leave my house now.'