The Three Generations of Fatherhood

This emotional thread connects Mike's childhood abuse, her longing for a father, and the father-daughter relationships surrounding Jennifer's death.

increasingBearing stren­gth in each eventdecreasing

Abuse in Moon Park

Abuse in Moon Park A Childhood Betrayal Mike says her father sexually abused her from the age of seven until she decided the abuse would stop after her tenth birthday. She sharpened her fingernails as a concrete act of resistance. A Family Ends When her father approaches again, Mike tears at his face, and her mother wakes. The family ceases to exist by noon, leaving Mike to be raised by the state.

Raised by the State

Raised by the State Seeking a Parent Mike tries to love the state as though it were a parent, giving herself fully to the role of police. She says what she wanted was not a child but a father. A Need Uncovered Her attachment to Tom makes more sense against that history. His trust and care touch a longing that professional respect alone could not satisfy.

Jennifer Reads to Mike

Jennifer Reads to Mike Care During Withdrawal While Mike dries out in the Rockwell home, nineteen-year-old Jennifer reads to her in the evenings and brings her water. Mike remembers her as patient and unreproachful. A Bond Without Judgment Jennifer does not treat Mike as a ruined person. That kindness becomes a lasting part of their friendship and makes Mike feel responsible for understanding her death.

A Daughter Lost

A Daughter Lost Tom's Grief Tom loses the child who arrived long after his sons, and his panic overwhelms his usual authority. The father seeks a killer partly because suicide would make his daughter's death harder to bear. Mike's Inherited Role Mike is asked to produce an answer as a friend and as a police. Her own history of wanting a father makes the request difficult to refuse.

Calling Him Father

Calling Him Father A Private Address After giving Tom a false explanation, Mike turns inward and addresses him as father. The word exposes how deeply his need for an answer has become part of her own emotional history. A Painful Inheritance Mike cannot give him the truth without fearing what it will do to him. The bond becomes both a source of love and a reason she participates in a lie.

When Mike is seven to ten

After Mike's parents disappear

During Mike's recovery at the Rockwells' home

March 4

April 2, after the phone conversation