Chapter 18 - Lily’s Lesson
Lily was starting to ask questions about why we lived here and why Dad wasn't there. It was a bridge I had been dreading. I wanted to protect her innocence, but I knew that secrets only created their own kind of shadows. We were sitting by the creek that ran through the edge of the property, her tossing pebbles into the water.
"Mommy," she asked, "why did we have to move away from my old house?"
I took a deep breath, choosing my words with the care of a master surgeon. "Sometimes, Lily, grown-ups make choices that aren't kind. Our old house didn't have enough love in it to keep us safe. So, we came here, where there is enough love for everyone."
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She thought about it for a long moment, watching the ripples spread in the water. "Is that why Grandpa is here? To make sure we have extra love?"
I choked back a sob, my heart expanding. "Exactly that, sweetheart. To make sure we have extra love." She nodded, satisfied, and went back to her pebbles. I realized that my duty wasn't to shield her from the truth forever, but to provide a context where love was always the primary, undeniable answer.
