Chapter 10: Return to Marcus

Sunday evening came too quickly. Elena watched the clock all afternoon with a sense of dread, knowing each passing hour brought them closer to the moment she'd have to take Lily back.

They'd spent the day quietly at the apartment. More math puzzles in the morning, a walk in the park after lunch, making cookies together in the afternoon. Simple activities, but they felt precious because Elena knew they were temporary.

At five thirty, Elena finally said what needed to be said. "Sweetheart, we need to start getting ready. I have to take you back to your father's house soon."

Lily looked up from the puzzle she was working on. Her face fell immediately. "Already?"

"I'm afraid so. The agreement was through the weekend. Tomorrow is a school day, and you need to get settled back at your dad's before bedtime."

"Can't I just go to school from here? You could take me."

Elena sat down beside her daughter. "Not this time. But we'll work on arrangements so you can stay with me more often. I promise."

"I don't want to go back," Lily said, her voice getting smaller. "Can't I just stay here with you?"

"Lily, I would love nothing more. But right now, the custody arrangement says you live primarily with your father. We have to follow those rules while the lawyers work things out."

"That's stupid."

"I know it feels that way. But breaking the rules would only make things harder in the long run."

Lily's eyes filled with tears. "I hate this. I hate everything being so complicated."

Elena pulled her into a hug. "I know, baby. I hate it too. But this weekend was wonderful, wasn't it? And we'll have more weekends. More time together. This isn't goodbye forever. It's just goodbye for now."

They packed Lily's few belongings in silence. The pajamas Elena had bought her, the drawing she'd made that afternoon, the small notebook where she'd been working on math problems. Everything fit in Lily's school backpack.

The drive to Marcus's house took thirty minutes through Sunday evening traffic. Lily sat quietly in the back seat, staring out the window, occasionally wiping tears from her cheeks.

Elena's hands gripped the steering wheel tightly. She wanted to turn the car around, drive back to her apartment, keep her daughter safe. But that wasn't how this worked. She had to play by the rules, even when the rules felt cruel.

Marcus lived in an exclusive neighborhood with large houses set back from the street behind perfect lawns and expensive landscaping. Elena pulled into the circular driveway and turned off the engine.

Neither of them moved for a moment.

"Do we have to go in?" Lily asked quietly.

"Yes, sweetheart. We do."

"Will you come with me? To the door?"

"Of course."

They walked up the stone pathway together, Lily's hand clutched tightly in Elena's. The front door was enormous, dark wood with frosted glass panels. Elena had walked through this door hundreds of times when she lived here. Now it felt like entering foreign territory.

Elena rang the doorbell and waited.

The door opened to reveal Vivian, her pregnant belly prominent beneath a designer maternity dress. She looked irritated, like they'd interrupted something important. Her hair was perfectly styled, her makeup flawless despite the late hour.

"Oh," Vivian said flatly. "You're here."

"Hello, Vivian," Elena said politely. "I'm bringing Lily home."

Vivian didn't respond to Elena. Instead, she turned her head and called back into the house. "Marcus! Your daughter is here."

Not "Lily is here." Not "Elena brought her home." Just "your daughter," like Lily was a package being delivered.

Vivian didn't invite them inside. She just stood in the doorway, one hand resting on her belly, blocking the entrance while they waited on the doorstep.

Lily pressed closer to Elena's side.

Finally, Marcus appeared behind Vivian. He was dressed casually in jeans and a sweater, holding a glass of what looked like scotch. His hair was slightly messy, like he'd been running his hands through it.

"Lily," he said, his voice softening when he saw her. "Come on in, sweetheart."

Lily didn't move immediately. She looked up at Elena with uncertain eyes.

"Go ahead," Elena said gently. "I'll see you soon."

"When?" Lily asked.

"We'll figure out the schedule this week. Your father and I will talk about arrangements."

Lily still hesitated, her hand tight in Elena's.

Marcus noticed. Elena saw something flicker across his face. Hurt, maybe. Or confusion about why his daughter was reluctant to come home.

"Lily, don't you want to see your room? I had Vivian redecorate it while you were gone. New curtains and everything."

"I liked my old curtains," Lily said quietly.

Marcus looked taken aback. "Well, these are nicer. More grown up. Come see."

Lily took a small step forward, then stopped again. She turned back to Elena. "Daddy? Can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"Can I bring some of my things to Mommy's apartment? For next time I stay there? Like clothes and books and stuff?"

Marcus's jaw tightened visibly. His grip on the glass got firmer. Behind him, Vivian rolled her eyes.

"Why would you need things there?" Marcus asked carefully.

"Because Mommy only has one extra shirt for me and I want to have my own stuff at her place. The way I have my own stuff here."

Elena watched Marcus struggle with this request. She could see the emotions crossing his face. Anger that Lily wanted to establish herself in Elena's space. Defensiveness about being questioned. But also something else. Uncertainty, maybe, about how to handle this without looking like the bad guy.

"Please, Daddy?" Lily's voice was small but hopeful.

Marcus took a long sip of his drink. "Fine. Go pack a bag. But not too much. You live here. This is your home. Not your mother's apartment."

"I know," Lily said quietly. "I just want some things there too."

She finally let go of Elena's hand and walked into the house, squeezing past Vivian who didn't move aside to make it easier.

Marcus stepped out onto the doorstep, closing the door partially behind him so they could talk with some privacy. The evening air was cool, and Elena could smell his cologne mixed with the scotch on his breath.

"She seems very attached to you all of a sudden," Marcus said, his tone cold.

"She always was. You just didn't notice because you kept us apart."

"That's not fair. I've been trying to give her stability, a proper family environment."

"By replacing me with Vivian?" Elena kept her voice calm despite the anger bubbling underneath. "How is that stability?"

"Don't start, Elena. I'm not doing this with you right now."

"I'm not starting anything. I'm simply pointing out that Lily called for me during her crisis. The school called me. She wanted me. That should tell you something."

"It tells me you're confusing our daughter with this weekend sleepover and making her think she has to choose sides."

Elena took a slow breath, counting silently to keep her temper in check. "Marcus, I didn't manipulate anything. Lily had a panic attack at school. The school couldn't reach you or Vivian. They called me and I came. That's what parents do. They show up when their children need them."

"I show up. I'm here every day providing for her, giving her a home, making sure she has everything she needs."

"Everything except emotional support and actual presence," Elena said quietly. "You give her things, Marcus. Redecorated rooms, expensive gifts, a big house. But what she needs is people who actually see her."

"You don't get to lecture me about parenting. You walked away from this family."

"I walked away from a marriage that was destroying me. Not from my daughter. There's a difference."

Marcus opened his mouth to respond but stopped when the door opened behind him. Lily emerged with her school backpack now stuffed full.

"I'm ready," she said.

Marcus looked at the bulging backpack with clear disapproval but didn't comment on it.

Lily walked over to Elena and hugged her tightly. "Bye, Mommy."

"Bye, sweetheart. I love you."

"I love you too." Lily pulled back and looked at her father. "Can Mommy come pick me up from school tomorrow? Just to say hi?"

"No," Marcus said immediately. "That's not necessary. The nanny will pick you up as usual."

"But I want to see Mommy."

"You just spent the whole weekend with her. You'll see her again when the schedule says so."

Lily's face fell. She looked like she might cry but was trying hard not to.

Elena knelt down to her level. "Hey, it's okay. I'll call you tomorrow evening, alright? We can talk about your day."

"Daddy doesn't let me answer the phone when you call."

The words came out innocently, but they landed like an accusation. Marcus's face reddened.

"That's because you're usually doing homework or having dinner when she calls," Marcus said defensively.

"Liar," Lily said quietly. "You just don't want me talking to her."

"Lily!" Marcus's voice was sharp. "Don't speak to me that way. Go inside. Now."

Lily flinched at his tone. She looked at Elena with scared eyes, then turned and walked quickly into the house.

Marcus and Elena stood facing each other on the doorstep. The silence between them was heavy with years of resentment and current tension.

"You're making this so much harder than it needs to be," Marcus finally said. "Lily was adjusting fine until you came back into the picture stirring things up."

"She was having panic attacks, Marcus. She's been withdrawn at school for weeks. That's not 'adjusting fine.' That's a child in distress."

"Children go through phases."

"This isn't a phase. This is our daughter telling us she needs help. And I'm going to make sure she gets it, whether you cooperate or not."

"Is that a threat?"

"It's a promise. I'm her mother. I'm not disappearing again just because it's inconvenient for you."

Elena turned and walked back to her car before Marcus could respond. She didn't trust herself to stay calm if the conversation continued.

As she reached her car, something made her look up at the house. On the second floor, a curtain moved in one of the windows. Lily's window.

Elena could see her daughter's small face pressed against the glass, watching her leave.

Elena raised her hand and waved, trying to smile despite the tears threatening to fall.

Lily waved back, a small, sad wave.

Then the curtain closed, and Lily disappeared from view.

Elena got into her car and sat there for a moment, hands on the steering wheel, taking deep breaths. She wanted to storm back into that house and take her daughter with her. Wanted to call her lawyer immediately and demand emergency custody. Wanted to do something, anything, to fix this unbearable situation.

But all she could do was start the engine and drive away, leaving her daughter behind in that big, cold house with people who didn't understand her.

The drive home felt twice as long as the drive there had been. Elena's apartment felt empty and quiet when she walked in. Lily's drawings were still on the refrigerator. Her math notebook sat on the coffee table where she'd left it.

Elena picked up the notebook and flipped through it, seeing her daughter's careful handwriting, the problems they'd worked on together, the little smiley faces Lily had drawn in the margins.

She sat down on the couch, clutching the notebook, and finally let herself cry for everything that was broken and everything that still needed to be fixed.