"Dad, do you ever wish I wasn't here?"
Marcus turned sharply.
"What?"
The boy stared at his hands.
"Do I make things hard for you?"
Marcus felt his chest tighten.
"Jordan, look at me."
The boy slowly raised his eyes.
Marcus spoke gently.
"You are never something I wish away."
Jordan's lips trembled.
His father continued.
"You're my son. I love you. Nothing changes that."
For a moment, Jordan looked as though he wanted to say something else.
But footsteps sounded in the hallway.
Vanessa appeared in the doorway.
"Marcus, dinner's ready."
Then she looked at Jordan.
Her expression hardened slightly.
"Still crying?"
The boy lowered his head.
Marcus frowned.
"He's talking about his mom."
Vanessa sighed.
"Well, he can't live in the past forever."
Marcus looked toward her.
"Vanessa."
She raised both hands.
"I'm just saying."
Then she walked away.
Marcus turned back toward Jordan.
His son was staring at the floor.
For the first time, Marcus wondered whether Vanessa's comments about Grace were hurting him.
He intended to speak with her later.
But when he did, she cried.
She said she felt unwanted.
That she was trying to become part of a family where the first wife remained an untouchable presence.
Marcus comforted her.
He explained that Grace would always be Jordan's mother, but that didn't diminish Vanessa's place as his wife.
Vanessa agreed.
She apologized.
And Marcus believed the problem had been resolved.
He didn't know she'd later told Jordan that his tears were making his father unhappy.
The incident involving Marcus's sister began on Monday evening.
Denise Carter was forty-one and worked as an office manager at a regional medical clinic. She was practical, outspoken, and fiercely protective of her family.
She'd been close to Grace.
After her sister-in-law died, Denise helped Marcus with school pickups and childcare whenever possible.
But as Marcus's new marriage settled into a routine, she visited less often.
Vanessa told her that the household needed privacy.
Marcus agreed that the family should develop its own rhythm.
Denise didn't want to interfere.
Yet she remained worried about Jordan.
During family gatherings, the boy seemed quieter.
He no longer ran toward her with his usual excitement.