Mrs Gladstone expression tightened when she heard Loretta's words.
For a moment, anger flashed across her face, but she quickly remembered the document they had signed before Loretta's marriage. The decision had been made, the ties had been cut, and Loretta had made it clear that she wanted nothing more to do with the Gladstone family.
She took a slow breath and softened her voice. "Loretta, no matter what has happened between us, I am still your mother."
Loretta's expression remained unchanged.
"I am your mother," Mrs Gladstone repeated, her voice softer this time. "Nothing can change that. You may be angry with me, you may blame me for many things, but I am still the woman who gave birth to you."
Loretta looked down at the phone. Those words would have been enough to make her soften before, but not anymore. What if she was the one that gave birth to her? She was still unwanted in her mother's eyes.
