Chapter 4: Sunday Dinner
Sunday evening arrived exactly as every holiday had before.
The long dining table glittered beneath crystal chandeliers.
Twenty-four place settings.
Three empty chairs.
Julia noticed them immediately.
So did Lily.
The little girl quietly squeezed her mother's hand.
Mark arrived separately.
His face looked exhausted.
No one greeted Julia warmly.
Linda simply smiled as though nothing had happened.
"I've already set Lily's place."
Julia looked.
The child's plate sat at the very end of the adult table.
Not beside her parents.
Beside the hallway.
Still an afterthought.
Julia pulled the chair out.
Then calmly carried the plate to the center of the table.
She placed it directly between herself and the only remaining empty chair.
Linda stiffened.
"What are you doing?"
"Making room."
Frank slammed his hand against the table.
"That's not where she sits."
Julia reached into her purse.
Neither arguing nor raising her voice.
She simply laid the thick binder onto the table.
Then another envelope.
County Property Records.
The room went silent.
"I've spent three years helping this family."
She opened the binder.
"I thought we were saving your home."
Every page landed with a soft slap against the polished wood.
Canceled checks.
Bank statements.
Property records.
Transfer documents.
Finally she slid the page showing the one-dollar property sale directly toward Frank.
"I wasn't helping family."
"I was funding a performance."
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
Even Tiffany's confident smile disappeared.
Julia looked around the table.
"You found room for twenty-four guests."
She rested one hand on Lily's shoulder.
"But somehow not for the only child who still believed this family loved her."
May you like
No one could meet Lily's eyes.
Not even Mark.
