Chapter 2

Nora's POV

That night, Vanessa and Skylar stayed over.

With Ray and Diane in the guest room, Vanessa had to sleep on a floor mat in the living room. She looked at the sofa and forced a laugh. "This is fine. I have to get up early to enroll Skylar anyway."

"I’ll drive you to the school," I offered.

Early the next morning, I dropped them off at the administration building. Pointing to the long line, I said, "You two line up. I'm going to check on Josie's academics. I’ll be back in thirty minutes."

Shortly after I walked away, my phone rang.

"Aunt Nora," Skylar said anxiously. "Mom went to the restroom and hasn't come back. We’re almost at the front of the line, and no one is here to pay the tuition."

"Don't panic, I'll call her."

"No!" Skylar interrupted immediately. "She's probably just lost."

I caught the nervousness in her voice. Vanessa hadn’t gone far; she was just trying to force me into paying.

I pretended to dial, walked into the office, and asked the staff, "My sister wandered off. Could you check the security cameras?"

They pulled up the footage. Vanessa was crouching behind a planter on the side of the building, scrolling through her phone.

I walked right up to her. "The restrooms are in the other building. Since when did you start going to the bathroom behind bushes?"

Her face stiffened. "I just needed some fresh air."

"Then go back to the line."

I dragged her back. When it was Skylar's turn, Vanessa lowered her voice. "I didn't bring any money. Can you cover it? I swear I'll pay you back."

I looked at her, stepped aside, and answered a fake phone call. For a full thirty minutes, I didn't say a word to her. As the line moved forward, Vanessa's expression grew increasingly ugly until she finally pulled out her own debit card and paid the tuition.

After the paperwork was done, I set absolute boundaries in front of her. "Focus on your work. Pay her living expenses on time now that she's boarding."

Vanessa opened her mouth, but seeing my unwavering expression, she hurried off with Skylar.

Over the weekend, Skylar and Josie stayed at my house. Unlike my past life, I didn't cook a massive feast. I made simple, everyday dishes and portioned out snacks and fruit equally.

Skylar probed cautiously, "Aunt Nora, can I still take private violin lessons?"

"The school has practice rooms for free," I said, taking a bite of food. "If you want private lessons, your mother will have to pay for them."

She lowered her head and stayed quiet.

Diane brought out a cold salad, casually sprinkling crushed nuts on top. Skylar picked up a piece, then suddenly froze and pushed her plate away.

"Aunt Nora, I can't eat this. It makes it hard to breathe."

My hand stopped mid-air.

"Me too," Josie chimed in.

The two girls exchanged a look and actually smiled.

Josie's peanut allergy was inherited from Ethan. Ray had the same condition, which I learned during my first year of marriage to the Whitakers. Vanessa ate everything—seafood, nuts—and her son Cody had no dietary restrictions whatsoever. A suspicion flared in my mind, but I suppressed it. Many people have allergies; I couldn't jump to conclusions over one dish.

That night, I video-called Vanessa and brought up Skylar's violin lessons. On camera, her dinner table featured a whole steamed Dungeness crab, cracked open next to butter and lemon.

"Cody loves it, so I buy it often," she said.

Throughout the call, she hugged Cody, praising his intelligence. Yet she turned to Skylar and said, "Study hard and don't cause me trouble."

She didn't ask about Josie once.

Suddenly, a man's voice came from off-camera.

"Do you have a boyfriend?" I asked.

Vanessa panicked. "The TV! It’s just the TV."

She made a quick excuse and hung up.

Late that night, I went to the kitchen for water. Passing the guest room, I heard Skylar on the phone. Her voice was low but full of resentment.

"We have the exact same dad! Why do I have to live under someone else's roof like a beggar?"

In my past life, I thought she was just angry at Vanessa for favoring Cody. Now, the nut allergy at dinner cleanly aligned with those words.

Back in my room, I sat for a long time. Then I went to the bathroom, retrieved a few strands of hair from Skylar’s comb, took Ethan’s toothbrush, and sealed them in a plastic bag.

After the weekend, I dropped the girls off at school. Half a day later, the school called.

"Mrs. Whitaker, Skylar got into a physical altercation with a classmate. Please come to the school immediately."