“What?” I sat on the bed. I felt rage rising. I stood again.
“In what f*****g context?” I asked.
“They mentioned you had gone to rehab,” she said, “and that ten years earlier your son had died from SIDS. They didn’t mention the house burning. Mom, what happens if they start looking into the house?”
“So what if they mention the house?” I said. “It was just a family tragedy.” Hmmm, did a burning house constitute a tragedy? A baby dying was definitely a tragedy. But a house? “A family hardship.” Hardship? Really? We went out and bought a more expensive house. Fortunately most of our photographs and important papers had been conveniently stored in the garage. Amazing how a kid her age had the presence of mind to put that stuff in the garage—before she set the house on fire.
“Besides,” I sa
