Chapter 7 - The Sister’s Reckoning
A week after the divorce papers were finalized, I met my sister Chloe at a quiet tea shop near Northwestern University.
She sat across from me in a simple sweater, her eyes swollen from days of crying. Eleanor had kicked her out of the house, her friends had distanced themselves after the scandal broke through family grapevines, and she was living in a tiny studio apartment while working part-time at a boutique.
"Meredith," Chloe sobbed, staring down at her cup of tea, unable to make eye contact. "I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry. I don't know why I did it. I was jealous of you... you had everything. The career, the house, the perfect husband... I just wanted to feel important."
I looked at my younger sister—the girl I had bought school supplies for, the girl I had protected from our mother’s harsh words when she was small.
"Jealousy is an explanation, Chloe," I said, my voice quiet and measured. "It is not an excuse."
"Are you ever going to forgive me?" she whispered, tears spilling onto the wooden table.
"Forgiveness is something I do for my own peace," I said, reaching into my purse and pulling out an envelope containing five thousand dollars in cash. I set it on the table between us. "This is the last money I will ever give you. It will pay your rent for three months while you finish your degree."
Chloe looked at the envelope, then up at me with fresh tears. "Mere..."
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"I forgive you as a sister," I said, standing up and wrapping my wool coat around my shoulders. "But I will never trust you near my life again. Don't call me. Don't come to my house. Live your life, Chloe. But live it without me."
I walked out of the tea shop, stepping into the clean, crisp winter air, leaving the past behind me for good.
