Chapter 4: The Call From the Past
The name on the cracked phone screen stayed there for three seconds.
Three seconds that felt like an entire lifetime.
*Lily’s biological mother.*
I stared at the words until my eyes burned.
Then I looked at Vanessa.
She didn’t look confused.
She didn’t look shocked.
She looked caught.
“Ethan,” she whispered.
I slowly turned toward her.
“You knew.””
She shook her head quickly.
“No, I didn’t.””
“Don’t lie to me again.””
My voice wasn’t loud.
It didn’t need to be.
The truth was already screaming.
Lily stood beside the doorway, holding her stuffed rabbit against her chest.
“Daddy?””
I looked at her.
The anger inside me disappeared instantly.
She was still just a child.
A child who had no idea adults had built an entire world of secrets around her.
I walked toward her and knelt down.
“Go downstairs for a minute, sweetheart.””
She looked at Daniel.
Then Vanessa.
“Are you fighting?””
I forced myself to smile.
“No.””
It was the worst lie I had ever told.
“Mommy and Daddy just need to talk.””
Lily hesitated.
Then she nodded and walked away.
Her tiny footsteps disappeared down the stairs.
Only then did I look back at the phone.
Daniel was still holding it.
“Answer it.””
Vanessa’s eyes widened.
“No.””
I stared at her.
“No?””
She stepped forward.
“You don’t understand.””
“Then explain.””
She looked at the phone.
The ringing stopped.
For a moment, nobody moved.
Then the phone rang again.
Daniel looked at me.
“She knows.””
“Who?””
He swallowed.
“The woman who gave birth to Lily.””
The words hit harder than I expected.
I knew Lily wasn’t my biological daughter.
At least, I thought I knew.
Vanessa and I had adopted her when she was two.
That was the story.
A story Vanessa told me.
A story I never questioned because I loved that little girl from the first moment I held her.
But now everything felt different.
Not my love.
Never that.
But the truth surrounding it.
I reached for the phone.
Daniel handed it to me.
The second I pressed answer, a woman’s voice came through.
“Daniel?””
I froze.
She didn’t sound like someone calling a stranger.
She sounded afraid.
“Who is this?””
There was silence.
Then:
“Who are you?””
I looked at Vanessa.
She looked like she wanted to disappear.
“My name is Ethan.””
The woman gasped.
“Ethan?””
“Yes.””
Her breathing changed.
“Are you... Lily’s father?””
My hand tightened around the phone.
“Yes.””
Another silence.
Then she whispered:
“Oh my God.””
I looked at Daniel.
Then Vanessa.
“Who are you?””
The woman’s voice cracked.
“My name is Rachel.””
My heart raced.
“Rachel what?””
She didn’t answer immediately.
Then she said:
“Rachel Parker.””
Daniel closed his eyes.
Vanessa stepped backward.
I felt the room shrink around me.
“Parker?””
Rachel continued.
“I’ve been trying to find Daniel for years.””
I looked at the man standing behind the wall.
The man everyone believed was dead.
“Why?””
Rachel’s voice became softer.
“Because he needs to know the truth.””
Vanessa suddenly grabbed the phone from my hand.
“No.””
I stared at her.
She pressed the phone to her ear.
“Rachel, stop.””
The woman on the other end went silent.
Then she said:
“Vanessa.””
The way she said my wife’s name made my stomach turn.
“You actually married him?””
Vanessa didn’t respond.
Rachel laughed sadly.
“I can’t believe you kept doing this.””
My hands curled into fists.
“Doing what?””
Nobody answered.
Then Rachel said something that made Vanessa drop the phone.
“Tell Ethan why you stole our daughter.””
The phone hit the floor.
The sound echoed through the room.
I looked at Vanessa.
“What did she mean?””
Vanessa’s lips trembled.
“I didn’t steal anyone.””
Daniel looked at her.
“Then tell him.””
She stared at the floor.
“I saved Lily.””
“From who?””
She looked at me.
And for the first time since I met her, I saw something I never expected.
Fear.
Not fear of losing me.
Fear of the truth coming out.
“From her mother.””
I looked at the phone on the floor.
Rachel’s voice was faint but still audible.
“Ethan, don’t believe everything Vanessa tells you.””
Then the call ended.
I stood there in silence.
Three people.
One child.
And a truth that was buried for twelve years.
Then Lily screamed from downstairs.
“Daddy!””
I ran.
And what I saw in the living room made my blood freeze.
Because Lily was holding an old photo.
A photo she had found somewhere.
And she was pointing at a woman standing beside her as a baby.
May you like
“Daddy,” she said.
“Why does Mommy keep hiding pictures of my real mom?””
