I simply resisted it.
She lowered her hand.
“We were upset last night.”
“You sounded very clear.”
“David and I had been talking about boundaries.”
“That’s fine.”
“We didn’t mean you should disappear financially too.”
She heard herself too late.
David glanced at her.
Sarah flushed.
I said nothing.
That sentence explained more than another hour of argument could.
They had separated me into two categories.
The mother who irritated them.
And the money they needed.
They wanted the first gone and the second unchanged.
Sarah’s keys hung from one finger.
My brass house key was still attached.
I pointed at it.
“I’ll take that back too.”
She blinked.
“What?”
“My spare house key.”
“Mom.”
“You asked for distance.”
“That doesn’t mean—”
“It means you don’t need unrestricted access to my home.”
I extended my hand.
She hesitated.
Then unhooked the key and placed it in my palm.
The brass was warm.
I closed my fingers around it.
“Have a good day.”
David stared.
“You’re serious.”
“Yes.”
