Chapter 3 - The Exodus
I carried Lily straight toward the living room, Daniel following a half-step behind me like an impenetrable shield.
Behind us, chaos erupted. My father’s heavy footsteps hurried across the dining room, his voice strained and panicked. “Emma! Emma, wait! Please, sweetheart, let’s talk in the den. Your mother spoke out of turn. She’s stressed from hosting—”
“Do not make excuses for her, Dad,” I said without stopping. “She meant every single syllable.”
In the living room, the towering spruce tree glowed with white designer lights. Beneath its velvet skirt sat dozens of beautifully wrapped packages. Over the past three months, despite our modest budget, Daniel and I had spent hundreds of dollars buying thoughtful gifts for everyone.
A designer leather briefcase for my father. An expensive silk scarf and customized perfume for Eleanor. High-end video games for Jason’s boys. A cashmere sweater for Rachel.
And there, shoved off to the far side near the electrical outlet, sat Lily’s little box.
The glittering purple angel she had spent days crafting at school had been pushed out of sight, already covered in fallen pine needles.
My heart twisted into a knot of burning rage.
“Daniel,” I said, keeping my voice steady for Lily’s sake. “Get the bags from the hallway closet.”
“On it,” Daniel said.
I knelt down on the rug, balancing Lily on my hip with one arm while reaching beneath the tree with the other. I grabbed the big green box meant for my father. I grabbed Eleanor’s silver-wrapped package. I pulled out Jason’s gifts, Rachel’s gifts, and every single wrapped box bearing our names on the tag.
“Emma! What are you doing?!”
Eleanor rushed into the living room, her face pale with shock. She watched in horror as I stacked the presents onto the floor beside me.
“You can’t take those!” she shrieked. “Those are family gifts! Jason’s boys are upstairs waiting to open them!”
“These are gifts from a burden and her parents,” I said, looking directly into her eyes. “You made it clear that Lily doesn’t belong in this family. If she doesn’t belong, neither do our gifts.”
“You are acting like a petulant child!” Eleanor shouted, her composure completely dissolving. “I am your mother! You will respect me in my house!”
“Respect is earned, Eleanor,” Daniel said coldly, stepping into the room with our winter coats and two large shopping bags. He didn’t hesitate. In three swift motions, he loaded our wrapped presents into the bags.
Then I reached all the way under the lowest pine bough.
I picked up Lily’s little purple paper angel.
The gold glitter caught the Christmas lights. On the back, in crooked, uneven purple crayon, Lily had written: *FOR GRAMA. I LOVE YOU.*
I brushed the dry pine needles off the paper wings. A tear slipped down my face, hot and furious, but I wiped it away before my mother could see it. I slipped the angel into my coat pocket, right next to my heart.
“Emma, please,” my father begged, reaching out a trembling hand toward my shoulder. “Don’t leave like this. It’s Christmas Eve. It’s freezing outside. Think about the family.”
“I *am* thinking about my family, Dad,” I said, looking at him with profound sorrow. “Daniel and Lily are my family. And I will never let anyone make my daughter feel unloved ever again. Not even you.”
“If you walk out that door, you’re cut off!” Eleanor screamed, her voice shrill, echoing off the high ceilings. “Do you hear me, Emma?! Don’t you dare call me when you need help! Don’t come crying back!”
I didn’t answer her.
Daniel zipped up Lily’s little puffer coat, pulled the hood over her soft brown hair, and picked up the heavy bags. I wrapped my arms securely around Lily, opened the front door—the grand, decorated front door Eleanor had forbidden us from using—and stepped out into the biting December snow.
The door slammed shut behind us.
May you like
The cold winter air hit my face, shocking and pure. Lily buried her head in my chest, her tiny hands clutching my sweater as the snow began to fall in heavy, silent flakes.
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