Quite a few of you asked me to continue that last chapter to see how Stevie and Elizabeth's conversation went, so here it is! I hope it lives up to the previous part. Thank you all for your kind words and your feedback!
Elizabeth held Henry's hand on the way up to Stevie's room. She knew it was silly, but she just needed the feel of his hand in hers to drive away the sound of her daughter yelling out of her head.
She took a deep breath while Henry knocked on the door.
"Go away!" Came Stevie's muffled reply.
"Stephanie McCord!" Henry called. Stevie opened the door. Her face was red and puffy and definitely tear stained. Seeing her like that broke Elizabeth's heart.
Stevie was confused and maybe even a little scared. The only time her father had ever called her Stephanie was when she'd been caught drawing on Alison with that marker when she was a baby. (She was just trying to cheer her up! Honest!)
"Dad, can I go to-"
"Your mother already said you couldn't. End of story."
Elizabeth cleared her throat. She wasn't looking forward to this conversation with her daughter.
"Look Stevie... we- we need to talk, okay?"
"O...kay."
They moved to sit on Stevie's bed, Henry keeping his hand on his wife's back. He saw Elizabeth open her mouth, but no sound came out. Instead she looked at him desperately, her eyes screaming that she had no idea how to start this conversation.
"Stevie" Henry began, "you know how Mom went to that sleep away school? The one we told you about last month?"
"Yeah."
Elizabeth looked gratefully at Henry and ran her hand over his knee. That was a perfect opening to lead her into it gently.
"Baby, did you ever wonder why I went there?"
Stevie nodded though she looked a bit unsure.
"When I was 15, my parents and Uncle Will were going to an ice cream shop. They got into a terrible accident, and my parents were killed."
Elizabeth had her eyes shut. If they'd been open she would have seen her daughter's blue eyes widen at the news and tears start to form. But all she could feel was Henry's hand on her back.
Stevie glanced at Henry who nodded his head. She said, "Mama?" and climbed into Elizabeth's lap.
"I'm sorry!" Whispered a childish voice before Elizabeth wrapped her in a hug. Elizabeth curled around her daughter and held her as tight as she could. Something in her chest, a weight that had been there since she'd heard that phrase come out of her little girl's mouth, lifted and disappeared. Now, all she had to was comfort in her grief. Thanks to her little brother, she was decent at this job.
Henry back away a bit, watching two of his favorite girls. They were going to be alright.
"Love you, Mama."
"Love you too, baby."