At the age of 13, she became one of the youngest mothers in Europe. Eighteen years later, a letter from her deceased father revealed a family secret he took to his grave.
When Emma was thirteen, her childhood ended before she even understood what adulthood meant.
While other girls her age were worrying about school, friendships, and what to wear to birthday parties, Emma was learning how to hold her newborn without hurting him.
She learned how to distinguish the cry of hunger from the cry of fatigue.
She learned how to stay awake at night, how to prepare drinks in bottles with trembling hands, and how to smile at her daughter when she was terrified that she was too young, too scared, and too inexperienced to be anyone’s mother.
Her daughter, Sophie, became the center of her world.
But Emma didn’t raise her alone.
Her father, Michael, stood by her side when the rest of the world seemed to judge her. He attended meetings, answered uncomfortable questions, and sat with her on the darkest nights when she wondered if she would ever have a normal life.He never told her she ruined his life.
