Chapter 8 - Rafferty Freezes
The silence on the patio became Rafferty’s worst memory.
Not mine.
His.
He explained later.
When he stepped outside, he saw:
His father on the ground.
Me standing over Callum.
Relatives shouting.
Kennel open.
He did not understand sequence.
Then Callum said:
Grandpa said you told him the cage was okay.
Rafferty’s mind went immediately to the old conversation.
Separate him from Baxter.
For perhaps three seconds, he wondered:
Did I create this?
So he froze.
Three seconds feels enormous when your child looks at you for rescue.
Rafferty’s childhood explained the rest.
Ambrose was not physically abusive to him in the dramatic sense.
He was authoritative.
Rules.
Sports.
Discipline.
Rafferty learned that challenging his father publicly was:
“disloyal.”
Family disagreements happened in private.
Never embarrass patriarch.
If Ambrose was wrong in front of outsiders, wait.
Discuss later.
That system had protected Ambrose’s authority for decades.
So Rafferty’s first instinct during chaos was:
Understand before contradicting Dad publicly.
The problem:
His son was already standing there terrified.
Parenthood demanded a different hierarchy.
Callum first.
Truth second.
Ambrose’s dignity much later.
Rafferty had not adjusted fast enough.
He owned that.
May you like
No excuse.
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