The house in Iowa was sold at a public bank auction exactly two months later. A year after that, my life in the Netherlands was wonderfully unrecognizable from my previous existence.
I had been promoted to a director position and built a circle of friends who actually cared about my well being. I heard through the grapevine that Shane and my mother were now living in a cramped apartment above a laundromat.
Shane was working a grueling minimum wage retail job at a hardware store. His inflated ego had been shattered by the reality of a rigid schedule and an angry manager.
My mother spent her days complaining about her cruel daughter, still unable to see her own role in the mess. I walked along the coast during a weekend trip and felt the warm sun on my face.
