It was somewhere between a gasp and a sob.
“You saw her?”
“Yes.”
“You saw my daughter?”
“Yes.”
“And you came home and said nothing?”
Nathan began crying.
“I was twelve.”
“You knew.”
“Dad threatened me.”
“You knew.”
“He said if I told you, he would send me away too.”
Margaret stood.
“You knew!”
Nathan flinched.
“You let me think she was dead!”
“I was a kid!”
“But you grew up!”
Nathan stood too.
“I know!”
His voice broke.
“I know.”
Silence crashed over the room.
Nathan covered his face.
“I tried to find her later.”
Margaret stared.
“What?”
“When I was twenty-five.”
“I went back to Carol.”
“She told me Emily had a new name.”
“Claire.”
Nathan nodded.
“She said Claire believed Carol was her mother.”
Margaret looked stunned.
“How?”
“She was seven.”
“She was traumatized.”
“Dad told her you died from the burns.”
Margaret swayed.
Sophie grabbed her arm.
