Summary

Eddy had gotten so accustomed to seeing Monique unhappy, her happiness seemed deceitful.

Once, while Eddy and Monique were sitting in their messy home, she told Eddy she loved his older siblings, but had found her life difficult after leaving their father. She often wondered why she had two children, but felt ashamed of the thought.

“A few months” after leaving her first husband, Monique met Eddy’s father (25). A man was her only way out. They “fell in love,” “moved in together,” and had Eddy (25). Although Monique thought Eddy’s father was different, he proved to be “just like all the others” (26, Louis’s italics). He was an angry, aggressive alcoholic. Only a few years into their relationship, she started talking about him “in the past tense,” remembering the way he used to act and seem (26). He controlled everything Monique did...