Chapter 9: The Test That Changed Everything
For a moment, nobody reacted.
It was like our minds couldn't accept the words.
Patricia had tested Mia.
Without telling us.
Without asking.
Without permission.
Daniel picked up the document.
“When?””
Patricia looked uncomfortable.
“When she was four.””
I stared at her.
“You took my daughter's DNA?””
“I needed answers.””
“You needed control.””
Her eyes flashed.
“You don't know what I knew.””
“Then tell us.””
She looked at the paper.
“The results weren't what I expected.””
Daniel looked down.
“What does that mean?””
Patricia hesitated.
That hesitation was enough.
“What does it mean?”” he repeated.
She finally spoke.
“It means Lucas is not Mia's biological father.””
The room went silent.
I felt dizzy.
“No.””
Patricia nodded.
“I had the test done.””
Daniel looked confused.
“Then why did you tell us Lucas was her father?””
“Because I thought he was.””
I stared at her.
“You thought?””
She looked at me.
“I made assumptions.””
The anger I felt was overwhelming.
“You destroyed years of people's lives because you guessed?””
“I was trying to protect you.””
“You keep saying that.””
My voice broke.
“But every time you say it, I hear something else.””
“What?””
I looked directly at her.
“I hear that you believed your judgment mattered more than everyone else's.””
Nobody spoke.
Then Daniel asked:
“Whose DNA matched?””
Patricia didn't answer.
She didn't need to.
Because the fear on her face told us.
“There was another person,” Daniel said.
Patricia looked down.
“Yes.””
“Who?””
Her voice was almost a whisper.
“Someone from Emily's past.””
I froze.
“Who?””
Patricia opened the folder.
There was another name.
A name I hadn't heard in years.
A name that made my entire body go cold.
“Marcus.””
I stared at the paper.
“No.””
Daniel looked at me.
“Who is Marcus?””
I couldn't answer immediately.
Because Marcus wasn't just someone from my past.
He was the reason I left my hometown.
The reason I changed my number.
The reason I promised myself I would never see him again.
But Patricia knew.
Somehow, Patricia knew.
And she had kept this too.
“Emily?””
Daniel’s voice brought me back.
I swallowed.
“Marcus was someone I knew before Lucas.””
Patricia watched me carefully.
“He was never supposed to be part of this.””
“Then why is his name on a DNA report?””
She didn't answer.
Instead, she reached for another envelope.
“This arrived two years ago.””
Daniel grabbed it.
“From who?””
Patricia's fingers shook.
“From Marcus.””
My heart pounded.
“What did he want?””
She looked at me.
“He wanted to meet Mia.””
I felt sick.
“Another person trying to find my daughter.””
Patricia nodded slowly.
“And I stopped him.””
Daniel closed his eyes.
“Of course you did.””
But then Patricia said something none of us expected.
“I stopped him because I knew what he had done.””
The room went quiet.
I looked at her.
“What did Marcus do?””
Patricia opened the envelope.
Inside was a photograph.
Not of Marcus.
Not of Mia.
Of me.
Taken years ago.
Before Daniel.
Before marriage.
Before everything.
On the back of the photograph was a handwritten message.
A message that made Patricia look terrified.
*Emily, I know the truth about what happened the night you disappeared.*
I looked at Daniel.
Then at Patricia.
Because suddenly I understood.
This was no longer just about Mia's father.
May you like
It was about a secret from my own past.
And someone had been protecting it for years.
