Three Years For Their Lie

Summary

I ran into my parents for the first time in ten years while taking my daughter for a low-tide stroll on the beach.

Lila was sprinting toward a statue for a photo with her favorite limited-edition plushie, when she ran straight into my mother.

Lila looked up to apologize, and the moment my mother saw her face, she froze. A stunned silence hung in the humid air.

“Rob, look at her,” my mother murmured, her voice thin. “She’s Seraphina. Exactly like our Sera at that age.”

I pulled my sunhat lower, hurried forward with a quick, generic apology, grabbed Lila’s hand, and spun to walk away.