Her expression hardened.
“He vanished.”
“Then one day, he stopped calling.”
I stared at her.
“He what?”
“He vanished.”
Rachel’s voice cracked, but only slightly.
“I called his number. Nothing. I went by places I knew he spent time. Nothing. I wrote to him. Nothing.”
“He got scared.”
She gave a bitter laugh.
“He got scared.”
“No.”
“You weren’t there.”
“I was his mother.”
Rachel leaned forward.
“And I was carrying his child.”
The words landed hard.
Rachel leaned forward.
“I waited for months, Nora. I kept thinking he would show up. Even after the baby was born, part of me thought maybe he would finally grow up and come back.”
I could barely breathe.
“He didn’t leave you.”
“Don’t defend him.”
Her face tightened.
“Please don’t defend him.”
“I’m not.”
“Yes, you are.”
“Rachel.”
She stopped.
“What?”
I forced the words out.
“Daniel died.”
The anger disappeared from her face.
