Chapter 21 - LORNA WRITES
Lorna wrote Estelle through counsel.
First letter at ten.
I stored it.
At fourteen, Estelle declined.
At seventeen, she read one.
It began:
I was jealous of a child.
Good.
No euphemism.
I believed marrying your father should make me the most important woman in his life, and I treated your existence like competition.
Estelle stopped.
“That’s pathetic.”
“Yes.”
She continued.
I also wanted influence inside a family structure I had not earned and did not understand. I told myself removing you from the house would create order. What I actually wanted was less resistance.
Then:
The things I said about an orphanage were cruel words spoken in rage. The documents I prepared were for residential placement, which was also wrong because you did not need it.
Precise.
Estelle appreciated that.
May you like
She did not answer.
No obligation.
