Chapter 5: The Woman From The Past
Ethan didn’t want to wait.
The moment we got home, he grabbed his jacket.
“I’m going.””
I stood in the hallway.
“Ethan, you don’t even know who this person is.””
“I know.””
“You don’t know what Marcus is trying to do.””
He stopped.
Then turned around.
“Neither do you.””
The words weren’t cruel.
But they were honest.
And I realized something.
For the first time, Ethan wasn’t blindly defending Marcus.
He wasn’t blindly blaming me.
He was searching for the truth.
So I grabbed my coat.
“I’m coming with you.””
He hesitated.
“You don’t have to.””
“I know.””
“Then why?””
I looked at him.
“Because I’ve been beside you your whole life.””
A small silence passed.
Then Ethan nodded.
“Okay.””
The address led us to a quiet neighborhood outside the city.
Nothing about the house looked special.
Small porch.
White fence.
A few flowers near the walkway.
But the second the door opened, I knew Marcus’s secret was bigger than I thought.
The woman standing there looked at Ethan and immediately covered her mouth.
“Oh my God.””
Ethan stepped back.
“Do I know you?””
The woman looked at me.
Then back at Ethan.
“You don’t remember.””
Her voice was shaking.
“Remember what?””
She opened the door wider.
“Come inside.””
The living room was filled with old photographs.
Family photos.
Hospital photos.
Pictures of a younger Marcus.
Ethan noticed them immediately.
“You knew my father?””
The woman nodded.
“Yes.””
“Who are you?””
She looked at him with sadness.
“My name is Rachel.””
Ethan crossed his arms.
“Why did my father send me here?””
Rachel looked at me.
Then at Ethan.
“Because he was afraid to tell you himself.””
That sentence made Ethan tense.
“Tell me what?””
Rachel sat down slowly.
“Your father didn’t leave because he didn’t care about you.””
Ethan looked away.
“Everyone keeps saying that.””
“Because it’s true.””
“No. He left.””
Rachel nodded.
“Yes.””
The honesty surprised him.
“He left. And that was wrong.””
She looked at him carefully.
“But the reason matters.””
I remained standing near the doorway.
Because something about this conversation felt different.
Rachel wasn’t defending Marcus.
She was explaining him.
And those were two very different things.
“What happened?”” Ethan asked.
Rachel took a deep breath.
“Your father was dealing with something he never told anyone.””
“What?””
She looked at me.
Then at Ethan.
“He was sick.””
The room went quiet.
Ethan blinked.
“Sick?””
“Yes.””
“Like… sick now?””
Rachel shook her head.
“No.””
She looked down.
“Years ago.””
Ethan looked confused.
“Then why didn’t he tell me?””
Rachel’s eyes filled with tears.
“Because he was told he might not have much time.””
Ethan froze.
I felt my chest tighten.
Because this was information even I never knew.
Rachel continued.
“He thought disappearing would hurt you less than watching him fail.””
Ethan shook his head.
“That makes no sense.””
“No,” Rachel said softly.
“It doesn’t.””
She looked at him.
“But fear makes people do things they regret.””
Ethan sat down.
For the first time, he wasn’t angry.
He was overwhelmed.
Then Rachel walked toward a cabinet.
She pulled out an old box.
Inside were dozens of letters.
All with one name written on them.
Ethan.
His breathing changed.
“Those are…”
“Letters your father wrote to you.””
Ethan stared.
“How many?””
Rachel looked down.
“Seventeen.””
He touched the box.
“But he never sent them?””
“No.””
“Why?””
Rachel’s voice became quiet.
“Because every time he tried, he convinced himself he had already failed you.””
Ethan looked at the letters.
Then suddenly one detail caught his attention.
The dates.
His face changed.
“Wait.””
He picked one up.
“This was written after he stopped visiting me.””
Rachel nodded.
“Yes.””
Ethan looked at another.
“And this one too.””
“Yes.””
He slowly turned toward me.
“David…”
I looked at him.
“What?””
His voice became a whisper.
“If he was writing these…”
He held up the letters.
“Why did you never find them?””
Before I could answer, Rachel looked toward the doorway.
Her expression changed.
Because someone else was standing outside.
Someone who had been listening.
Someone who wasn’t supposed to be there.
And when Ethan saw who it was, his entire body froze.
May you like
Because the person standing behind the glass door was the one person he never expected to see.
His mother.
