“No,” Helen cut in, her voice shaking now, but steady with conviction. “This isn’t about a vacation. This is payback for all the years of neglect. For treating me like help instead of family. I love those children, but you don’t get to disappear and come back like nothing happened.” For once, Lisa had no answer. Only silence.
Then, quietly: “Fine,” she said. “If that’s how you feel.” The line went dead. Helen sat there for a long time, the dial tone fading into the hum of the house. She placed the phone face-down on the table, her reflection staring back faintly from the dark screen. For once, she didn’t cry. She just whispered to the empty room, “That stops now.”