Monica scoffed, but I saw a flicker of something—doubt? Guilt?—in her eyes. “Your father and I have plans. Big plans. The twins need space.”

“And Emma needs her family,” I countered, my words sharp and precise. “She’s not just some leftover from Dad’s past marriage. She’s his daughter.”

Monica rolled her eyes, but I pressed on. “You may want to erase Mom from these walls, but you can’t erase her from our hearts. And you certainly can’t erase Emma’s place in this family.”