He was watching his entire family of origin reveal itself, in a single night, to be something monstrous, and he was doing it alone, in a hotel room, with a phone.

Chapter 19 — Put Lucas On

“Put Lucas on the phone,” Julian choked out.

“Please.

I need to see him.

I need him to hear me.” I carried my phone over to the bed and angled the screen so that our son could see his father’s face.

“Hey, champ,” Julian whispered.

And the moment Lucas saw him, the careful composure my son had been holding all night simply shattered, and he burst into tears.