I almost drove to Destin to bring my 13-year-old daughter home after seeing one photo on Facebook.
For months, my ex-husband’s new girlfriend, Sienna, had refused to meet me—even though my daughter was spending more and more time with her.
When Mark invited Ellie on an eight-day vacation, I initially said no.
I couldn’t send my teenage daughter away with a woman I’d never even met.
But Ellie broke down.
“You’re just scared she’s going to replace you.”
Those words hurt because we’d only recently started rebuilding our relationship after the divorce.
So I agreed.
One condition: Ellie had to call me every night and send photos.
Tuesday night, Mark sent me a beach picture.
“She’s having a blast!!”
At first, everything looked normal.
Then I noticed where Ellie was standing—and Sienna’s hand on her arm.
I told myself I was imagining things.
Then I found Sienna’s public Facebook album from the trip.
Twenty photos.
In almost every one, Ellie was separated from them.
One caption stopped me cold:
“Our first real family vacation.”
I called Ellie.
She sounded strangely quiet.
The next day, she finally whispered:
“Sienna doesn’t like me.”
Then she told me Sienna kept moving her out of photos and saying she needed to get used to not being the center of her dad’s life anymore.
That’s when I stopped wondering whether I was being jealous.
I called Mark.
“I’m coming to get her.”
What happened when I arrived at the rental house changed the way my daughter saw the divorce—and the way I saw my ex-husband.