I can see how you would be unable to outrun something like that, and would punish yourself for it-- let alone expect others to do so. It sounds as if she not only put the child at risk simply by leaving him unwatched, but as if she betrayed the mother who considered her a friend.
Atoning might help how she feels about herself, but she may feel as if she won't have anything like the chance to do that.
One of the things I liked most about how you wrote this was how skillfully you withheld the main character's crime and engaged our sympathy for her. Because at the end, I did find myself judging her, much the same experience as everyone she encounters in a new life is likely to do once the secret is out.
no subject
I can see how you would be unable to outrun something like that, and would punish yourself for it-- let alone expect others to do so. It sounds as if she not only put the child at risk simply by leaving him unwatched, but as if she betrayed the mother who considered her a friend.
Atoning might help how she feels about herself, but she may feel as if she won't have anything like the chance to do that.
One of the things I liked most about how you wrote this was how skillfully you withheld the main character's crime and engaged our sympathy for her. Because at the end, I did find myself judging her, much the same experience as everyone she encounters in a new life is likely to do once the secret is out.