Ben always wanted pizza.
Something was going on.
I simply couldn’t figure out what.
For illustrative purposes only
Part 3 — He Wouldn’t Leave Her Alone
Soon I started noticing other things.
If I went upstairs to shower, I would often return and find Ben sitting beside Brenda.
If Daniel and I stepped outside for a few minutes, Ben suddenly didn’t want to join us.
And whenever Diane offered to stay with Brenda, Ben somehow appeared in the nursery.
One afternoon, Diane reached into the bassinet to pick the baby up.
Ben immediately stepped between them.
“Move, sweetheart,” Diane said.
“No.”
The room went quiet.
“Ben.”
He stayed where he was.
“Move.”
He looked toward me.
Only then did he reluctantly step aside.
Later, I took him somewhere private and asked what was going on.
“Did Grandma do something that upset you?”
“No.”
“Then why are you behaving strangely whenever she’s around Brenda?”
