Yet here I was, feeling like I’d been left behind by my own flesh and blood. Like unwanted baggage nobody wanted to claim.

When my mother finally stepped out onto the porch, she wouldn’t look me in the eye. She pulled her cardigan tighter around herself and said, “Skylar didn’t mean those things, Riley.

She’s just under a lot of stress.”

I almost laughed at the absurdity of it. “Stress? She just inherited a condo worth two million dollars, so what exactly is stressful about that?”

My mother flinched at my tone but offered no answer. She stepped back inside and left me alone on the porch without another word.

That silence spoke louder than any argument could. It told me exactly where she stood, and it certainly wasn’t with me.