Chapter 13: The Signature That Wasn’t Mine
I stared at the document on my phone until the words stopped looking real.
*Emergency Custody Petition — Submitted by Mark Anderson.*
At the bottom of the page was a signature.
My signature.
A signature I had never written.
For a moment, I couldn’t even speak.
Then I looked at Mark.
Even though he wasn’t in the room, I could see his face in my mind.
The calm expression.
The careful explanations.
The way he always made me feel like I was overreacting.
But this was different.
This wasn’t a misunderstanding.
This was a crime.
“Chloe?””
Zoe touched my arm.
I handed her the phone.
She read it.
Then her expression changed.
“He forged your signature.””
My mother covered her mouth.
“No…”
I looked at her.
“You still want to protect him?””
She shook her head quickly.
“No.””
Her voice broke.
“I didn’t know.””
Megan stood up.
“I did.””
Everyone turned toward her.
“What?”” I asked.
She looked down.
“I knew he was preparing something.””
My anger returned instantly.
“You knew?””
“Yes.””
“And you said nothing?””
She closed her eyes.
“I thought it would only scare you.””
I stared at her.
“You thought my husband trying to take my daughter away would only scare me?””
“I was wrong.””
“No.””
My voice was quiet.
“You were afraid.””
Megan didn’t argue.
Because she knew.
Everyone had been afraid.
And everyone had used that fear to justify hurting me.
I grabbed my coat.
“Where are you going?”” Zoe asked.
“To find Mark.””
Zoe immediately stood.
“I’m coming with you.””
“No.””
She frowned.
“Chloe.””
“I need to do this.””
Megan looked at me.
“Don’t go alone.””
I turned.
“You don’t get to worry about me.””
The words hurt her.
Good.
They needed to.
But then she said something that stopped me.
“Because he knows how to make you look like the problem.””
I froze.
She was right.
That was the entire plan.
Make me angry.
Make me emotional.
Make me look unstable.
Then take Lily.
I looked at Zoe.
“Call Ethan.””
“Why?””
“Because I need someone who knows what Mark has been hiding.””
Two hours later, I sat across from Ethan in a quiet coffee shop.
It was strange.
The man sitting in front of me looked familiar and unfamiliar at the same time.
The person I once loved.
The person I thought disappeared.
The person who had been fighting to find his daughter.
“I’m sorry,” he said.
I looked at him.
“For what?””
“For not finding you sooner.””
I looked down.
“I’m sorry too.””
His eyes lifted.
“For what?””
“For believing you left.””
He swallowed.
“I never would have.””
The pain in his voice was real.
And that hurt.
Because the truth was, both of us had been victims of the same lie.
“Tell me about the custody petition.””
Ethan pulled out a folder.
“I got this from someone inside the firm.””
I looked at the papers.
“Who?””
“Rachel.””
The lawyer.
“She said Mark’s case was unusual.””
“Because of the fake signature?””
“Yes.””
I flipped through the pages.
There were accusations.
Claims I had emotional issues.
Claims I was dangerous.
Claims Lily was unsafe with me.
Then I saw something else.
A witness statement.
My blood ran cold.
“Megan.””
Ethan nodded.
“She was listed as a witness.””
I laughed softly.
Of course.
“She was going to testify against me.””
“Yes.””
I looked at him.
“Why are you helping me?””
He looked confused.
“Because Lily is my daughter.””
I waited.
“And because you’re still the person I promised to protect.””
That sentence almost broke me.
Before I could answer, my phone rang.
Mark.
I answered.
“What?””
“Chloe.””
His voice sounded exhausted.
“I know you know.””
I didn’t speak.
“I can explain.””
“No.””
“Please.””
“You forged my signature.””
Silence.
Then:
“I didn’t have a choice.””
My hands tightened.
“Everyone always says that.””
“Chloe—”
“You had choices.””
“I was scared.””
“You keep saying that.””
“Because it’s true.””
I stood.
“You tried to take my daughter.””
“No.””
“You filed paperwork.””
“To protect myself.””
“From me?””
A pause.
Then he whispered:
“I was afraid Ethan would come back.””
I closed my eyes.
“He did.””
“I know.””
“And you were afraid of losing Lily.””
“Yes.””
“Then why didn’t you just tell me?””
Silence.
The kind that answered everything.
Finally, Mark said:
“Because I knew if you knew the truth, you’d hate me.””
I looked through the coffee shop window.
At strangers walking by.
At normal people living normal lives.
“My daughter was never yours by blood.””
Mark’s voice broke.
“But she was always mine.””
I swallowed.
“That’s the only honest thing you’ve said.””
Then I hung up.
But as I put the phone down, Ethan looked at me.
His face had changed.
“What?””
He hesitated.
“There’s one more thing.””
“What?””
“The custody petition wasn’t the only thing Mark filed.””
My stomach tightened.
“What else?””
Ethan slid another document across the table.
A divorce petition.
May you like
With a date.
A date from two weeks before Thanksgiving.
