In The Face of Death

Everything Mom gave Becca was something I could never dream of.

“Mom, you’re exactly like the mom I see in my dreams. I love you so much. But no matter what, Daisy is your biological daughter. Will you abandon me for her one day?”

Seeing Becca’s searching eyes, Mom’s heart ached, and she bent down, pulling her tightly into her arms.

“Silly Becca, how could you think that? You will always be my only daughter. As for Daisy, I abandoned her a long time ago. Whether she lives or dies has nothing to do with me.”

I had always known how she felt, but hearing it out loud still made my heart tug painfully.

Just then, Mom’s phone rang.

“Hello, is this Daisy Canes mother? She hasn’t been at school for three days, and no one has called in to explain her absence. Has something happened to her?”

Hearing the teacher’s voice, Mom froze for a brief moment. Then, as if snapping back to herself, she barked, “You’ve got the wrong number. I’m not her mother.”

After that, she hung up.

Becca tilted her head up innocently and asked what had happened. Mom’s expression instantly brightened. She gently coaxed Becca back to her room, telling her to take a nap. When Becca woke up, she promised she would cook her favorite spaghetti.

Becca cheered happily and ran off to the bedroom. Only then did Mom take out her phone again. This time, her face darkened as she dialed Dad’s number.

“Nate, are you dead or something? Why hasn’t Daisy been going to school for the past few days? I just received a call from her teacher!”

Dad’s irritated voice came through. “Claire, are you crazy? What does Daisy skipping school have to do with me? Besides, didn’t you use to skip class all the time when you were younger, running around with those punks? Maybe she inherited that from you and is off somewhere with a man already!”

“What did you just say? Nate, if she inherited anything, it’s from you! You can’t live without women. You’re basically a walking stud! If you ask me, Daisy was ruined by all those women you keep out there. That’s why she’s so wild at such a young age!”

Dad was about to fire back when a little girl’s voice suddenly interrupted. “Daddy, didn’t you say Daisy brings bad luck? You promised me you wouldn’t mention her anymore. Are you trying to go back to her? Do you not want me anymore?”

Dad immediately panicked. His tone softened as he hurried to comfort her.

“How could that be? I love you the most. Even if Daisy died, I wouldn’t care about her.”

Before Mom could respond, he hung up.

Furious, Mom cursed under her breath, her voice sharp with anger. “Nate, you think you can enjoy yourself out there and dump that burden on me? Dream on. I won’t let you have your way!”

She tossed her phone aside and turned toward the kitchen, starting to cook Becca’s favorite spaghetti.

Watching the two of them bicker back and forth, not a single one of them willing to come home and check on me, I could only chuckle bitterly.

I didn’t know how much time had passed, but just as Mom finally finished cooking, there was a knock on the door. A look of annoyance flashed across her face.

“That ungrateful girl must be back after fooling around out there! How dare she have the nerve to come looking for me? I’ll break her legs!”

Yet, when she opened the door, standing outside were several police officers.

“Are you Daisy’s mother? Her teacher has reported her missing. When we found her, she was already dead in her bedroom.”