Chapter 56
ANNALISA
"I know, baby, I know." I moved closer to his bed, wanting to reach out and comfort him but afraid he'd pull away. "I did slap Aunt Alice, and that was wrong. I shouldn't have done that, no matter how upset I was. But the fall—"
"She fell because you pushed her!" Chase insisted. "I saw it happen! Why are you lying about it?"
The accusation in his voice made my chest ache. My son thought I was not just violent but also a liar, someone who'd hurt someone and then denied it to avoid consequences.
How did I explain to a six-year-old that sometimes adults manipulated situations, that what he thought he saw might not be the complete truth? How did I tell him that Aunt Alice—who he loved and trusted—had orchestrated this entire disaster?
I couldn't. Because even if I cou
