Emma had expected excuses.
She had expected Helena to blame her husband, explain her circumstances, or insist that everything had happened a long time ago.
Instead, the older woman admitted what she had failed to do.
It did not erase the past.
But it allowed Emma to breathe a little more easily.
They agreed to meet at a small café.
Helena arrived carrying an old handbag and a family album. Her hands trembled as she placed the album on the table.
“I brought these because I thought you might want to see them,” she said. “There are photographs of Lucas as a child, and pictures of the family before everything fell apart.”
Emma did not open the album immediately.
“Why are you doing this now?”
“Because I am getting older, and I finally understand that silence doesn’t repair anything. I can’t change what happened to you. I can’t undo the choices I made. But I can tell you the truth about my part in it.”
