I Canceled Seven Hundred Dollars After Christmas Night Left My Daughter Alone in the Dark

My palms stayed flat on the dark green desk blotter.

“Two PM,” Evan said again.

He pulled a wooden chair up next to mine and sat down.

“Clara, where were we at two PM on Christmas Eve?”

“Right here in this house,” I said.

“I was peeling sweet potatoes in our kitchen.”

“You hadn’t even left the house yet,” Evan said.

“We didn’t load the car until four o’clock,” I said.