How My Privileged Family Turned Against Me And Now Wants My Property

In search of the truth

Over a steaming cup of coffee, I looked Mom straight in the eye. "Why now?" I asked. "What brought you back into my life after all this time?" Her face looked like a puzzle in which different emotions flashed like an unfinished symphony. I kept my gaze fixed on her as she sipped her coffee, determined not to dance around the issue any longer.

Hints of vulnerability

Mom hesitated, her eyes lowered, and for a moment there was a flash of unusual vulnerability. I thought she was going to tell me the truth, but then she deftly deflected like a practiced dancer: "Oh, have you heard about the new bakery nearby?" She evaded my question with practiced ease. It seemed as if she had let her mask slip for a moment, only to put it back on again immediately and carefully.