Chapter 81-Pain of the Past

SAVANNAH

Dad purses his lips and looks at Mom, who glares at him. “What is he talking about, Mom? When did you keep him out of my life?”

She balls her hands into fists. “I made sure to cut off all his connections from you,” she says slowly. “And I never told you that he never stopped trying to get back in your life, but I shut him down at every angle,” she says, trembling. I know from the look on my face that she knows she messed up, but she continues anyway. “I never told you he wrote to you, he sent gifts to you, he came to see you, and I never allowed him.” She swallows. “I was protecting you.”

Tears trail down my cheeks. “You knew how much I wanted my father,” I say calmly. “You knew how much I was bullied for not having a father.” Her eyes glisten with tears as she looks at me. “All my life, you watched me grow up with hatred for him, knowing he was fighting to play the responsibility and to be a part of my life, but you made sure that didn’t happen.”

My voice is surprisingly calm