Chapter 21 - THE FAMILY DIVIDESSome relatives chose Patricia.
Some chose me.
Most claimed they chose neither while clearly choosing something.
Aunt Susan said:
“Patricia made a terrible mistake, but destroying her relationship with her granddaughter seems cruel.”
I answered:
“Lily does not exist to rehabilitate Patricia.”
Uncle Robert said:
“Families used to handle things without police.”
I said:
“Families used to hide things.”
He stopped calling.
Good.
My father-in-law’s brother, George, surprised me.
He visited once.
Sat at the kitchen table.
Said:
“Michael covered for Patricia too much.”
I had never heard anyone in Daniel’s family say that.
“Did he know?”
“About her temper? Yes.”
“About the physical stuff?”
George looked away.
“Some.”
“How much?”
“I don’t know.”
That answer was probably honest.
Families are not databases.
May you like
They are networks of partial knowledge.
That is what makes silence so efficient.
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