She screamed for her mother not to go. She begged and cried, kicked and swung her arms around like a windmill. When her mother reached for the door she latched her arms around her waist and held tight, fingernails biting into the fabric of her aqua blue shirt. The mother tried to pull away but the girl wouldn’t let her go. She couldn’t let go.

“Jenny, honey, I need to go to work now. I’ll be back soon. You need to stay here with your father,” the mother said sternly while trying to pry her daughter’s hands from her shirt.

“No!” Jenny screamed. “You can’t leave me with him!” The father came over to the two of them and picked up Jenny’s feet, pulling her towards him. But Jenny held on to her mother for dear life. She became a rickety bridge hanging over a ravine, ready to break at any moment. Dangling between her mother and father, Jenny looked down. Even at her young age, she knew that if she let go, it would be the same as if she fell into a deep chasm. The fall would hurt far more than the three feet that stood between her and the hardwood floor.

“Gentle, Howard,” the Mother snapped. But he pulled even harder, finally yanking the girl from her mother’s body. Jenny and her father fell backward together and when they hit the floor, her head snapped against is chest. She wailed, her scream so loud that the sound waves were almost visible.

“Mommy!” she howled. But when she was able to right herself and look back at the door, her mother was already gone.