I’ll never forget that night. She showed up at my apartment one evening and said, ‘You’re gonna be a daddy!’ Damn! Could she be subtle, or wha...? So I did the right thing, which for sure turned out to be totally the wrong thing. I had planned on staying with the same oil company I was working for but the way it worked is I made big money if a well came in and nothing but wages if it didn’t. Cindy made it clear that we needed guaranteed money, and now. I found a job selling farm and ranch. But, I haven’t told you the whole truth. This is hard to say. You deserve to know, and there’s no easy way to break it to you.”“Dad, please. This is killing me. What are you saying?” Dad looked up at us and said:“During the day when you thought I was at work, well, on some days I really wasn’t.”Mom exclaimed, “You’ve been having an affair!? Is that it? And you wanted us to get together so it would ease your mind when I found out?!?! How could you?!!”“Oh, Christ! No, no! That’s not what I was. This was a woman she'd known for fifteen years, a woman she knew was capable of instant – and, when necessary, brutal – decisions, a woman whose grasp of theory never caused her to lose sight of the reality on the ground ... and a woman who clearly hadn't thought about one of the most basic facts of her current situation: If she went, she was going to be taking slaves – however much she might be working to ensure their rights and fair treatment – and if she didn't, she'd be consigning a bunch. That was my cue.As I approached her, I extended my hand, offering a handshake, and said “ Hi, I’m Todd.”She looked at my outstretched hand, then my face, then my hand again. Raising her eyes to mine, she gave me a slight smile and put her right hand into mine. We shook hands, both with a firm grip. I held hers for a moment before letting go, sliding my hand over her long fingers. I waited, without speaking, while she looked at me. My patience paid off.”I’m Toni,” she said quietly. I could.