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

I stood up, holding Lucy tight against my hip.

Her little shoes dangled against my skirt.

“Where do you think you’re going?” my mother asked, stepping into the middle of the hallway.

“We’re leaving,” I said.

“You haven’t eaten,” my mother said.

She fussed with her napkin again, narrowing her eyes at Lucy’s shoes.

“The ham is sliced.

We’re waiting on you.”