I looked at my mother.
She was staring at my father’s photograph again.
“Robert was such a handsome man,” she whispered.
Then she looked up at me.
“Are you his sister?”
I felt something inside me collapse.
“I’m your daughter, Mom.”
She smiled politely.
“Oh, that’s lovely.”
I turned away so she wouldn’t see me cry.
But one question still tortured me.
-
“Why did you lock her bedroom door?”
Daniel looked ashamed.
“I was scared she’d wander out of the house at night. The first time it happened, I found her two streets away. I thought keeping the door locked would protect her.”
One of the officers gently interrupted.
“Locking someone in a bedroom can be dangerous, especially during an emergency. She needs a safer care arrangement.”