Chapter 23 - Claire’s first apology
Claire’s first letter arrived eleven months after sentencing.
I am sorry everything reached such an extreme point.
No.
Then:
I was terrified you were going to leave everything to Eli.
There.
Closer.
Then:
I reacted badly when you refused to sign.
Badly.
I put the letter down.
No response.
Seven months later, another.
I tipped your wheelchair backward because I wanted to frighten you and humiliate you.
I stopped.
Specific.
I knew you could not safely get up alone.
More.
I said you could starve in the dark because I believed your lack of money would prove you needed us.
There.
Then:
The amount of money you had was never the issue. I treated dependence as permission to control you.
That was the first sentence worth keeping.
She continued:
I also let myself believe Eli’s refusal of family money meant you loved him more because it made my resentment easier to justify.
No request for forgiveness.
Good.
I replied through Rachel:
May you like
I received your letter. Thank you for describing your conduct accurately.
Nothing else.
