“You’re listed as co-guardian on the permanent record.”

“That was the condition,” I said.

“We agreed to it back in February.”

Clay laid the papers on the Formica counter.

He lifted both hands to cover his face, and his shoulders shook twice in total silence.

“I was so blind to what she was doing, Mom,” he said.

“If you hadn’t stopped me, I’d have gone on believing her excuses.”

“You took the parenting classes,” I said.