Chapter 26 - A BABY DOES NOT BELONG TO A LINE
Camille became a foster parent years later.
That worried me.
Then I stopped making her future children an extension of my fear.
The licensing system reviewed her conviction.
Her history.
Treatment.
References.
Time.
She was not automatically approved.
Years passed.
Eventually she became an approved respite foster caregiver under strict professional oversight, then later adopted an older child through lawful process after full review.
Not a newborn.
Not a replacement for Margot.
A twelve-year-old girl named Tess who had already rejected two prospective placements because adults kept talking around her.
Camille listened to her.
Maybe she learned.
Maybe people can change without being restored to the exact role they abused.
Margot met Tess first.
Later, carefully, Camille.
No forced reunion.
At sixteen Margot chose one lunch.
Afterward I asked:
“How was it?”
“She’s weird.”
“Helpful.”
“She apologized too much.”
“Also weird.”
“Can I see Tess again?”
“Of course.”
Camille’s redemption, if that word even fit, came through respecting a boundary she desperately wanted to cross.
She let Margot know Tess without demanding access to Margot.
May you like
Behavior.
Not speeches.
