Her face began to redden. I recognized that expression. It was the same one she used to get when she was a little girl and didn’t get her way.
“And what are we supposed to do with the kids? Robert and I already paid for the hotels. We already made the reservations. We can’t just cancel everything like this.”
“That’s not my problem.”
“It’s not your problem?” she repeated, incredulous. “They’re your grandchildren.”
“Yes, they’re my grandchildren, but they are your children. Your responsibility, not mine.”
“I don’t recognize you. This isn’t you.”
“You’re right. This isn’t the woman you’ve known your whole life. That woman let herself be walked all over. This is the new version who has decided that enough is enough.”
“And you’re going to do this? You’re going to ruin your grandchildren’s Christmas just to make a point?”
Her words were designed to make me feel guilty. And they worked for a moment. I felt the familiar pang in my chest, the urge to back down, to say I was exaggerating, to return to my usual role.
But then I remembered the conversation I had heard: “Just leave all eight grandkids with her to watch and that’s it.” I remembered all the forgotten birthdays, all the lonely nights, all the moments when I had been invisible to my own family.
“I’m not ruining anything,” I said in a firm voice. “You ruined the respect you should have had for me years ago. I’m just picking up what’s left of my dignity.”
“This is pure selfishness. Dad would be disappointed in you.”
That was the last straw—mentioning my dead husband, using him as a weapon against me.
“Don’t you dare,” I said, and my voice came out harder than I intended. “Don’t you dare talk about your father. He never treated me the way you do. He valued me. He saw me. He truly loved me.”
“And we love you, too.”
“No. You use me. There’s a difference.”
Amanda took her phone out of her pocket.
“I’m calling Robert. He’s going to talk to you. This is crazy.”
“Call him if you want. My decision isn’t going to change.”
She dialed while glaring at me. She waited for Robert to answer.
