“No matter what happens, Margaret, you will always have a home with us.”

Three days after he died, the locks on Leo’s office were changed.

The longtime housekeeper was dismissed.

Two people from Leo’s business were told not to contact me.

And the family attorney received a message from Chloe explaining that grief had left me “confused.”

At the funeral, Chloe performed heartbreak beautifully.

She clung to my arm when several employees from Leo’s company approached.

She cried when cameras from the company’s memorial team were nearby.

She called me Mom.

Then everyone left.

That evening, my suitcase was waiting near the front door.

One suitcase.

Not even packed by me.

My clothes folded by someone else.