Dora's voice didn't waver as she stood in front of her father. The question had already been asked twice, but she knew she needed to push until she got a real answer. She wasn't going to let him talk around it or pretend he didn't understand. Too much had happened, and she was done being kept in the dark.
"What happened?" she repeated, this time slower, each word spaced out as if she wanted to make sure he understood she wasn't backing down. Her eyes were colder than usual, and even Luca seemed startled by the shift. She wasn't yelling, but the seriousness behind her tone was sharper than anything she had used in years.
Her father looked genuinely unsettled. The tears in his eyes weren't enough to soften her mood. She watched him closely, refusing to look away or move until he said something meaningful.
"Your mother was mentally ill," Luca finally said, his voice weak and heavy. "After she had you, she became depressed, and it only got worse."
