"I think you choose the path that keeps the ledger tidy," she said. "You sign papers and smooth edges and then expect the rest of us to live with the fallout. I want you to talk to her. Not to scold her,or to threaten her, but to ask her calmly to step back from the battle she is so adamant to fight. Ask her to pick another day. Ask her to consider Isadora or us, her parents."
Mr Hayes's jaw worked. "And if she refuses?"
"Then I will go to Isadora's," Emilia said stating it like a fact. Her voice was quiet but absolute. "I will not split myself in two because someone decided to make a contest of my children's lives. I want to be at both, but I will not be complicit in a choice that forces my daughter to compete for my love, she has been doing that for more than 20 years now and I've been quiet about it but not anymore"
He moved toward the desk and picked up the phone, fingers hovering. "You want me to call her now?"
