Daisy seemed to sense the change in her mother's face, her bright smile fading as she glanced at her mother in the mirror. Her little brows furrowed, and she bit her lip, hesitant. After a long pause, she finally spoke, her voice soft and unsure.
“Mummy… are you and Daddy okay now?” Her question hung in the air like a fragile thread, delicate but weighted. “He’s not… he’s not hitting you anymore, right?”
Evelyn’s heart stopped, her hands freezing mid-comb. She felt the blood drain from her face, a knot of emotions tightening in her throat. She hadn’t realized how much Daisy had noticed, how much her little girl had been affected by the things she’d tried so hard to shield her from.
For a moment, she couldn’t find her voice. The reality of the situation—of everything Daisy had seen and h
