A whole minute passes in silence. The disappointment has settled steadfastly in my stomach. I turn to leave. Then:
“Elyssa…”
It’s so soft that I almost miss it. I turn back around to see that my mother has tears in her eyes.
“Yes, Mama?”
“Is it true?” she asks.
“Which part?”
“The… the… trafficking…” she stammers.
I know she wants to avoid saying the word “sex.” No wonder my r**e was such a difficult topic for her to discuss.
“It is.”
“I… I…”
I look between my parents. “Are you telling me you didn’t know?”
“Elyssa, of course we didn’t know,” Papa says, taking a tentative step towards me. “We knew Josiah had his secrets. But we never thought…”
“It was this bad?”
“Yes.”
“You knew he had secrets, though,” I point out. “And you still trusted him.”
“He looked after us,” Mama says
