ll living room heavy, not with celebration, but w

ted the worn velvet clot

ets lay

y carved, cool to the eye

in, almost dull – th

said they sh

lculating, flicked from my o

that never reached her eyes, "we all know Jessica is destined for g

the world's possibilities, smirked. Sh

life, I had

e Wallflower, my han

the Trailblazer wi

e had

h world, an innovator whose

was apparently paved with

at of those she trust

family demands –

irty, a brilliant,

ah, with the W

was a

ble, just as the

d me "sensible"

ities led

l, the kind that valued a daughter

t daughte

nd of my own life, a shad

ed, ravaged and bitter, rev

not what you think... there' s pow

rning about our "family legacy"

to paint a tar

essica's bones clean turned their

t with a whimper, but

y eyes

living room. The sam

leamed under

ng, her words a familia

confident, almost pred

saw it in the slight,

he choice fe

t about two p

about s

story I never wanted to