I imagined every possible explanation.
Maybe she was dating someone.
Maybe she had gotten into trouble.
Maybe Mark was allowing her to do whatever she wanted because he wanted to remain the fun parent.
By the time the truck turned into a gravel parking lot near the lake, I was furious enough to forget that I had intended to approach the situation calmly.
I pulled in behind them, opened my car door, and got out.
Mark was standing beside the truck, holding two paper cups of coffee.
Emily sat on the passenger side with her backpack on her knees.
They had been laughing.
Actually laughing.
The sound stopped when Emily saw me.
Her smile disappeared so quickly that it looked as though someone had wiped it from her face.
“Mom?”
Mark turned around.
His expression changed from confusion to disbelief.
“Zoe? What are you doing here?”
I marched toward them.
