“The second I put her in his arms, he just… broke.”
Claire briefly pressed her cheek to Ivy’s hair.
“He kept saying Claudia’s name. He kept saying Claudia and Ivy were supposed to grow up together.”
I stared at the baby.
Two cousins.
Two birthday cakes.
Two backpacks beside a door.
A future we had imagined before either girl could even hold up her head.
“And you let him?”
I looked away.
“He didn’t do anything wrong with Ivy, Mel.”
“I know.”
Willie had connected two separate events because he was frightened and only eight.
But Claire still wouldn’t meet my eyes.
“He didn’t do anything wrong.”
“What happened after Robert gave Ivy back?”
Claire hesitated.
“Mel…”
“No.”
My voice hardened.
“I’ve had enough people choosing which truth I’m allowed to hear.”
Her eyes filled.
“Robert needs to tell you.”
“Then give me the question I need to ask.”
Claire looked down at Ivy.
Finally, she whispered:
“Ask him if he said goodbye to Claudia.”
I drove home in silence.
Fifteen minutes later, I walked through the front door.
Robert stood as soon as he saw me.
“Did you hold Claudia?”
He froze.
“Yes.”
I grabbed the back of a chair.
“How long?”
He wiped his face.
“Maybe 20 minutes.”
“How long?”
“Twenty minutes.”
Twenty minutes.
More time than I had ever gotten.
“What did she look like?”
Robert began crying.
My throat tightened.
“What did our daughter look like?”
“Mel…”
“I don’t know her face, Robert.”
He lowered his head.
“She had your mouth.”
His voice broke.
“And the shape of your eyes.”
I pressed my fist against my lips.
He stepped toward me.
“Don’t.”
He stopped.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“You were still in surgery when they asked if I wanted to see her.”
He wiped his cheeks.
