“There was still something in her mouth.”
I froze.
“What?”
He knelt beside Lily.
“Open your mouth for Mom.”
Track Pregnancy
Lily hesitated.
Then slowly opened it.
I leaned closer.
And saw it.
A tiny pale piece lodged near the back of her mouth.
My hand flew to my face.
And I started crying all over again.
Not because Daniel had hurt her.
Because suddenly I understood how frightened he had been too.
He had been trying to remove it when I walked in.
Daniel put his hand on my shoulder.
“I was afraid if you rushed toward her, she’d panic and swallow it.”
I looked at him through my tears.
“You still should have told me.”
“I know.”
“No more secrets.”
“Never again.”
Over the next few weeks, Lily got proper help, and the habit slowly stopped.
The white box disappeared.
Daniel stopped sneaking out of bed.
