Chapter 23 - LINDA’S CONSEQUENCESLinda pleaded to a lower-level assault charge involving Ethan.
No prison drama.
Probation.
Anger-management program.
No contact until family court approved.
Financially, she faced restitution for unsupported caregiver claims and civil liability related to the forged loan documentation.
She blamed me publicly.
Then Ryan.
Then the trustee.
Eventually herself, a little.
Her first apology letter to Ethan began:
Grandma is sorry your mother turned one mistake into—
I threw it away.
Second:
Grandma only wanted to help our family—
Returned.
Third, eighteen months later:
I took your room because I believed being an adult made my needs more important than yours. I hit you because you challenged me, and I was wrong. None of that was your fault.
I gave that one to Ethan.
He read it.
Then said:
“Can I not answer?”
May you like
“Yes.”
He never did.
