“Come in, come in, Katya. What’s wrong?” “Where’s Alex?” My father glanced at a clock on the wall. “Out with friends.” “This late?” The man shrugged. “He’s an adult. I can’t forbid it or ground him.” I paced across the living area, which had a couch, a recliner and a television, but not much in the way of decoration besides a single picture hanging on the wall. It was the first time I’d stepped foot in my father’s home since he’d appeared back in my life after deserting our family. The place didn’t give me much of a clue as to what the man was like. I stepped up to the picture and realized it was one of us as a family back when I was young and Alex was a baby. Seeing the happy smile on my mother’s face tugged at my heartstrings. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen her smile. Toward the end of her life, I’d tried everything to cheer her up, but life had been too hard.
