Chapter 12 - TAWNY COMES TO LENA’S
Tawny arrived unannounced.
Lena almost refused to let her upstairs.
I agreed.
My sister wore no makeup.
I had not seen her without it since college.
“Can I come in?”
“You’re already here.”
Fair.
She sat.
For ten minutes, neither of us spoke.
Then:
“I’m sorry I called you a servant.”
I waited.
“And for laughing.”
I waited.
“I didn’t laugh at the bowl.”
“You smiled.”
“I was shocked.”
“You smiled.”
She looked down.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because you finally got in trouble.”
The honesty landed harder than an apology.
“For what?”
“For making everyone look stupid.”
I almost laughed.
“Tawny, I processed your expense reports.”
“Exactly.”
She looked angry now.
“You always had this quiet superiority thing.”
“I cleaned duplicate charges.”
“You made me feel like a child.”
“You submitted a Chanel bag as influencer styling.”
“It was used in a campaign.”
“You kept it.”
She covered her face.
“This is what I mean.”
“What?”
“You always have the receipt.”
I sat back.
“There was a receipt.”
She laughed once, bitterly.
Then cried.
Our whole relationship sat inside that absurd exchange.
Tawny had been the favored daughter socially.
I had been the trusted daughter operationally.
She thought I was powerful because Dad asked me about numbers.
I thought she was powerful because Mom defended her.
Both of us mistook different kinds of usefulness for love.
She told me something important.
Dad had asked her to prepare a statement for my transition review.
“What statement?”
“That you were controlling company spending for personal reasons.”
“Did you?”
“Yes.”
She looked ashamed.
“What did you say?”
“That you froze my card after we fought.”
“That happened.”
“I left out the receipts.”
“Of course.”
“I’m withdrawing it.”
“Why?”
She stared at my stitches.
“Because Mom hit you and Dad still spent breakfast yelling about the bank.”
Finally.
A crack wider than family loyalty.
Tawny handed me her phone.
Texts with Dad.
Kurt:
Need transition committee to understand Jodie cannot separate emotion from control.
Tawny:
She’s not crazy.
Kurt:
I didn’t say crazy.
Tawny:
You’re making a case.
Kurt:
I’m protecting the company.
The sentence again.
May you like
Protection.
Permission.
