My 6-year-old granddaughter phoned me in panic just after midnight. “Mommy says the baby is coming! Help!” I asked, “Where’s daddy?” She answered, “He k!cked mommy’s tummy and left.”…..

He understood how to handle crisis. This was just another kind of crisis that a nurse appeared in the doorway. Visiting hours are almost over. The patient needs rest. Harry stood and leaned down to kiss Cassid’s forehead. Get some sleep. I’ll take care of Lydia and I’ll take care of everything else. Dad.

Cassidy caught his hand. Be careful. He’s not just some angry drunk. He’s got friends, connections, people who help him. I know, Harry said. So do I. He picked up Lydia and walked out of the hospital room with a measured pace of a man who’d made a decision. In the elevator, Lydia looked up at him with serious brown eyes that reminded him of Cassidy at that age.

Papa, what did mommy mean when she said she wants daddy gone? Harry considered his words carefully. Sometimes people do things so bad that they can’t be around the family anymore. Your daddy hurt your mommy and the baby, so he can’t live with you anymore. Good, Lydia said with six-year-old certainty. I don’t want him to hurt mommy again. He won’t. Harry promised.

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