CHAPTER 17

Matt felt the silence linger for a moment as he processed her words. Before she spoke again, Matt blurted out, "I hate my dad." Erica stared blankly at him. The words were just there between them. There was nothing to be done about them. Even saying them out loud did nothing to weaken their truth. "He... he controls everything about me. About my life. Everyone around me in my life is around because of him. They- i just- I don't know. I feel alone."

Sadness grew on Erica's face. She looked like she was lying beside a puppy and was fighting the urge to scoop it up. A...