Chapter 2

I watched the bowl being carried off, and without thinking I reached out to grab it.

Ada refused to hand it over, pulling it back against her chest.

"You've still got the nerve to snatch it?"

The second my fingertips touched the rim, she gave it a hard yank.

The bowl shattered to pieces.

The egg rolled across the floor, coated in dust.

I stared blankly at the egg on the ground.

But Ada was the first to lay blame.

"What is wrong with you? Fighting over two eggs?"

I looked up at her.

"I cooked that."

"She's long since finished her confinement. Can't she make her own?"

Ada gave an unhappy snort.

"So what if you cooked it?"

"What in this house did you ever buy with your own money?"

"My son supports you, and you still talk back to me?"

When I heard that, my hands were shaking with anger.

Ada crouched down, picking up the pieces and grumbling.

"This bowl cost a good bit back then, dozens of dollars."

"You just smash it, no second thought. You don't care one bit."

Dirk quickly stepped forward.

"Mom, don't move, I'll take care of it in a minute."

Ada slapped his hand away.

"Leave it, let me see if it can still be pieced back together."

The more she talked, the angrier she got.

"Lying around at home for months, not earning a single cent."

"Eating my son's food, living in my son's house."

"And still such a temper. Who could afford to keep you?"

No income?

I didn't know how she could say something like that.

"Quitting my job to rest through the pregnancy was a decision Dirk and I made together."

I looked at Dirk.

I wasn't asking for anything else. I only hoped he'd tell the truth.

Ada frowned and asked him, "Tell me, is that true?"

Dirk's eyes started to drift.

"No... no, it wasn't."

"When did I ever agree to that?"

My eyes went wide.

"Dirk, what are you saying?!"

He deliberately avoided my gaze.

"It was you who didn't want to work anymore. Why pin it on me?"

I froze where I stood.

It felt like a knife twisting in my chest.

It hurt worse than the wound from the difficult birth.

Seeing that I was upset, Dirk hurried to smooth things over.

"All right, all right, stop fighting."

"If you want eggs, I'll go boil some. That works, right?"

I stared at him coldly.

"Is this about who boils the eggs?"

But he just looked annoyed.

"Then what?"

"Just go boil four eggs now, problem solved, right?"

"What's there to argue about?"

I opened my mouth, but I couldn't get out a single word.

This was the man I'd chosen.

I fell silent.

I knew there was no point in saying anything more.

His way of handling things was always to change the subject.

Play dumb, and paper over the cracks.

Nothing like the man I first met. He'd become someone else entirely.

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

My brother's voice came through.

"Letty, open the door!"

I turned to go answer it.

Ada immediately blocked me.

"Who's out there?"

I looked her in the eye and said, "It's my brother. Is there a problem?"

Ada's face suddenly changed.

"You little schemer, you really planned this out!"

"You dared call your family over ahead of time to back you up?"

She turned and shot Dirk a look.

"Do not open that door!"

Dirk stood there, not moving.

My brother knocked a few more times.

"Letty, are you there? Open the door for me!"

Ada dropped her voice.

"Leave him out there. Let's see how long he can stand it."

"This is my home. I'll open the door for whoever I want."

I couldn't worry about any of it anymore.

I stepped around her and went straight to the entryway.

Ada crossed her arms and warned me from on high.

"Don't forget, this is my son's home too."

"When I say no, it means no."

"You open that door, and you can stop calling me your mother-in-law!"