I remembered my father's hand on my shoulder.
I remembered the way he had tried to hold me back when I first saw Cassie fall.
He had told me not to make a scene.
Then he had told me not to call the police.
I couldn't understand how those words had come out of his mouth.
He knew Trey had been drinking.
He knew Trey had taken Cassie.
He knew she had fallen.
And still, his first concern had been his son's future.
He was afraid of another arrest.
He was afraid of prison.
He was afraid of what the police might discover.
I understood that Trey had already been in trouble twice.
I understood that another arrest could have serious consequences.
But I also understood that my daughter needed help.
There was no comparison.
I had spent years watching my parents protect Trey from the consequences of his choices.
I had seen how easily they changed the subject.
I had heard how quickly they found excuses.
I had listened to them describe twelve years of destructive behavior as a temporary difficulty.
I had never imagined they would do it while Cassie was missing.
My mother's words were still bothering me too.
She had blamed me for creating trouble.
I wondered what she expected me to do.
Stand quietly on the dock?
Pretend everything was fine?
Wait until Trey decided to tell the truth?
I couldn't do any of those things.
I had already handed my phone to my nephew.
I had already told him what to report.
I had already entered the water.
I had made the decision.
And I wasn't going to reverse it.
I looked toward the shore again.
I couldn't make out what my father was saying now.
I didn't need to.
His opinion no longer determined what I did next.
I turned back toward the water.
My daughter needed help.
That was the only thing that mattered.
Click here to continue reading: PART 15: The Vest I Had Checked So Carefully Was Back on Shore, and I Couldn’t Stop Thinking About the Little Girl Who Should Have Been Wearing It
The One Rule I Never Let My Daughter Forget, and the Family That Thought I Was Being Far Too Careful
Part 14 of 20
