Page 118 of The Family Guest

Then, the most heartsickening, gut-wrenching thought infiltrates my mind… my mother, my very own mother, left me there to die. I’ll never get over that and maybe, just maybe, she’ll pay the price and…

I shove that thought out of my mind and switch the subject. “Hey, can we play some music?”

“Of course, dear. What do you like to listen to?”

“I like old-school stuff.”

“Me too!” She turns on the radio. Blasts it. “I already love you like a daughter!”

Britney Spears roars on. How can you not love her after all she’s been through?

I sing along.

“Oops…I Did It Again.”

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