Kyle stared at the rest of the envelopes.
“She wrote every year.”
He pressed one letter against his chest.
“I spent every birthday wondering why she didn’t love me enough to call. All that time, she was waiting for me to answer.”
Mia placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.
“How am I supposed to mourn thirty years I didn’t even know had been stolen from me?” he asked.
“So Grandpa lied?” Mia whispered.
Kyle slowly nodded.
The following afternoon, we drove to Robert’s house.
When he opened the door and saw Gladys sitting in our car, all the color drained from his face.
“You found her.”
Kyle held up the bundle of letters.
“Did you hide these?”
Robert looked away.
“I was protecting you.”
“From what?”
“Your mother was becoming ill.”
Robert explained that Gladys had started forgetting appointments and leaving appliances on. She had wandered away from home several times and occasionally forgotten to collect Kyle from school.
