At first he called on Sundays.

Then twice a month.

Then there were gaps big enough for the boys to stop asking me to put the phone on speaker.

At the end of that first year he moved in with Carla.

His new address came from an attorney’s notice about property division, not from a conversation with his children.

I had filed for child support.

A court order followed, then sporadic payments and long periods when nothing arrived.

Collecting what he owed took letters, forms, and meetings after my evening shifts.