Crossword Genius

Sorry to separate father and daughter in California (3)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

sad

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'sorry' is the definition.
(I know that sorry can be written as sad)

'separate father and daughter in california' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'daughter' could be 'd' (genealogical abbreviation) and 'd' is found within the answer.
The remaining letters 'sa' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

'to' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for sad that I've seen before include "Mournful and depressed" , "Tragic" , "Downcast" , "Morose" , "Melancholy, depressed" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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