A Christmas Tragedy

It was Christmas Day, and my daughter, Lily, had been in a car accident. She needed a $100,000 surgery, and fast.

I called my husband, Mark, pleading with him to pay for the surgery and come see our girl.

But Mark was overseas with his "old flame," Sarah, and her daughter. They were having Christmas together. He was completely dismissive.

"Sarah's kid has never had a dad; she needs me!" he snapped.

My voice broke as I begged, "Lily’s surgery can’t wait! She really wants to see you, Mark."

"You and Lily are both so selfish and needy," he retorted with disgust. "Just wait at the hospital."

He made us wait all night. Lily died on the operating table, her surgery delayed.

When I got home, Mark grabbed Lily’s ashes and dumped them into the toilet.

“This gross stuff shouldn't be in the house!” he snarled.

I was too late to stop him, and I watched helplessly as my daughter’s ashes were flushed away.

But when he found out Lily was gone, he completely lost it.

I stood in the morgue, my heart shattered, touching her cold, stiff face. The reality of her death was a constant ache.

Suddenly, my phone rang. I saw his number and my hand instinctively tightened.

"Hey," he said with a mocking tone, "still waiting at the hospital? Haha, you deserved that, a lesson to you both. Trying to scam me for money." Mark's voice dripped with satisfaction.

It wasn't long ago that he was more anxious than me when Lily had a fever. A simple headache and he’d rush her to the ER. When had he become like this?

"Mark, she's dead!" I choked out, finally feeling all hope vanish.

"Babe, can you grab that dress for me?" I heard a sweet, singsong voice coming from Mark's side.

It was Sarah!

It should have been so obvious, every holiday, his "old flame" always had an "emergency" that would call him away. Why would he have time for Lily on Christmas?

A few days before Christmas, he had promised Lily he would take her to Disney World.

That day, she woke up so excited, got ready early, and waited for Mark.

But he had just been making empty promises. She had snuck out while I was cooking. I found her, a bloody mess, barely conscious. On the way to the hospital, she kept calling for her dad.

The surgery was a hundred thousand dollars. All of our money was in Mark’s accounts. It was the only way to save her. But he thought I was lying, that I was just trying to steal from him.

Hearing her voice made my pain even worse.

He brushed it off, “Gotta go, I have a conference call.”

Before he hung up, I heard Sarah's daughter sweetly whining, "Uncle Mark, where are we going to play today?"

I looked at my phone's home screen - a picture of the three of us smiling for the camera.

It seemed so happy, so sweet. The reality was like a punch to the gut. My own daughter lying on a cold slab while he’s with someone else’s kid for Christmas.

I couldn't take it anymore. I clutched my chest as my heart ached, and fresh tears poured over the dried streaks on my cheeks.

The hospital q...