She kept the premise.

I have stopped waiting for the apology, because I finally understand that it was never available — that asking Wilhelmina to apologize to me was like asking her to hand me the one brick she was standing on.

Chapter 19 — Only for Herself

Ansel, to his credit, actually changed.

He went to therapy, and to financial counseling, and committed to paying off every debt he’d legally guaranteed, and cut off contact with his mother and sister to break the cycle.

Months later he met Odalind at a neutral office and handed her a small velvet box: her grandmother’s emerald ring and gold bracelet, tracked down at a pawnshop and bought back.