Chapter 8
Chapter 8: The Hardest Apology
Danielle took a deep, shuddering breath and stepped into the light of the kitchen.
Mia looked up, her expression immediately turning guarded. She stepped slightly in front of Amara, a tiny, fierce protector. The sight of her five-year-old defending her older sister from her own mother made Danielle want to die of shame.
“Mia, sweetheart, can you go to your room for just a few minutes? I need to talk to Amara alone,” Danielle said, keeping her voice as soft and gentle as possible.
Mia looked at Amara, seeking permission. Amara nodded slowly. Once Mia had scampered off, Danielle stood awkwardly in the center of the kitchen. The distance between her and Amara felt like a vast, uncrossable ocean.
Slowly, Danielle pulled up a chair and sat a few feet away from the stool. She didn't try to touch Amara. She knew she had lost that privilege.
“Amara,” Danielle began, her voice trembling. “What I said in the living room... it was the worst, most wicked thing a mother could ever say to her child.”
Amara looked down at her hands, her shoulders tense. She didn't speak.
“I was angry. But not at you,” Danielle continued, tears spilling over her cheeks. “I was angry at things from a long time ago. Things that have absolutely nothing to do with you. I let the darkness inside me spill out, and it burned you. And I am so, so incredibly sorry.”
Amara slowly lifted her head. Her large, dark eyes—eyes that held too much sorrow for an eight-year-old—met Danielle’s.
“Are you going to send me away?” Amara asked, her voice a tiny, heartbreaking whisper. “Because I'm not really yours?”
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The question shattered Danielle’s heart completely. She fell out of her chair, dropping to her knees on the cold kitchen tiles. She reached out, grasping Amara’s small hands in her own.
“No. Never,” Danielle sobbed, pressing her forehead against the child’s knees. “I am never sending you away. I was wrong, Amara. I was so wrong. You are my daughter. I chose you. And I am going to spend the rest of my life proving it to you, if you'll let me.”
