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A Daughter Left Behind Finds Strength, Success, and the Family That Never Walked Away

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Ezoic

By morning, her parents had agreed on a solution. They packed Ivy’s belongings into three plastic bags and drove her to her aunt’s small yellow house. They didn’t stay long enough to hear her aunt’s questions. They didn’t offer explanations. Within minutes, they were gone.

Aunt Carol didn’t treat the moment like a burden. She opened the door, greeted Ivy with warmth that reached her eyes, and ushered her inside. She didn’t demand reasons or rehash decisions. Instead, she made grilled cheese sandwiches with a little too much butter and tucked Ivy under a quilt that smelled of laundry soap and old paperback novels.

Later that night, when Ivy tried to stay awake to keep her sadness from spilling over, her aunt sat at the side of the bed and brushed a strand of hair from her forehead.

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