Chapter 5
Ava expected punishment for protecting food.
That was what I understood when she pulled the plate toward her chest.
She did not look guilty.
She looked prepared.
“Please don’t throw it away, Daddy. We’re still hungry.”
The mold had spread across one corner.
I wanted to throw the plate through the window.
Instead, I set both hands flat on the carpet so Ava could see I would not grab it.
“I won’t take it.”
Her eyes searched mine.
“Promise?”
“I promise.”
I removed my suit jacket and placed it around Ava and Grace.
Mia crawled closer.
Chloe stayed near the table leg, watching the ballroom door.
“Is she coming?” Chloe whispered.
“Who?”
She would not answer.
Bianca answered for her.
“Ethan, stop rewarding their little performance.”
The party had followed her into the doorway.
Guests stared over her shoulders, smiles still fading from their faces.
I turned my head toward Bianca.
The look on her face told me she expected me to be embarrassed.
Not horrified.
Embarrassed that my daughters had disrupted her event.
Mia touched my sleeve.
“She said food makes girls ugly.”
Bianca laughed.
“She twists everything.”
I placed my hand gently against Mia’s cheek.
Cold.
Far too cold.
“What did she give you today?”
Mia looked at the plate.
“Christmas bread.”
Ava whispered, “We saved it.”
“For what?”
“Tomorrow.”
I closed my eyes for one second.
When I opened them, Bianca was no longer my wife in my mind.
She was an adult standing between four five-year-old children and food.
I rose slowly.
“Where are their coats, Bianca?”
She rolled her eyes toward the guests.
“This is exactly what I meant. You come home, and suddenly they become helpless.”
Lorraine moved beside her.
“The girls have become manipulative.”
Grace made a small sound and hid her face inside my jacket.
I looked at Lorraine.
“You were sitting beside them.”
“They refused proper dinner.”
“What was proper dinner?”
Silence.
I looked toward the table.
Theo had roasted chicken, vegetables, warm bread, and milk.
My daughters had ice water.
I picked Chloe up carefully.
She weighed almost nothing against my arm.
May you like
Then I called Mason.
Read the full story 👉 Bianca accused the girls of performing, but their careful rationing of moldy bread showed how long fear had shaped their behavior.
