Gemotions

"Don't you go poking around in things, Mary," her aunt had warned, eyes narrowed. But Mary had always had a mind of her own. The past, as far as her family was concerned, was a sanitized fairy tale.

In a forgotten shoebox, she found photographs of her grandfather, a stern man in their stories, gambling at a casino. There were women in the photos, their faces blurred by time, but the scene was a far cry from the pious man of their mythology.

Mary’s shoulders stiffened. The lie was so blatant, so carefully constructed. Her fingers itched to confront them all. The urge to blow the whole thing open was fierce.