Chapter 10: The DNA Test
I stared at the message until the screen went dark.
Then I turned it back on.
As if the words might have changed.
They didn’t.
*“Mark, I found Lily’s real father. You need to see who it is before he comes for her.””*
My hands felt numb.
The world around me moved, but I felt frozen inside it.
Claire had known.
Or at least she knew enough to search.
Enough to find answers.
Enough to scare me.
I looked at the people standing in front of me.
Daniel.
My mother.
The two people who had hidden pieces of the truth from me.
And then Claire.
The woman who had entered my life after Emma died.
The woman who wore Emma’s locket.
The woman who searched my daughter’s room.
For the first time, I didn’t know which person I could trust.
“Where is Claire?”” I asked.
Nobody answered.
Then my mother quietly said, “She left.””
“Of course she did.””
I walked outside the storage unit.
The cold air hit my face.
I needed space.
I needed to breathe.
But every breath reminded me of the same thing.
Lily might not be biologically mine.
And yet every memory I had of being her father was real.
The first time she said “Daddy.””
The night she had a fever and refused to sleep unless I held her.
The day she learned to ride a bicycle and crashed into my legs because she wanted me to catch her.
DNA couldn’t erase that.
But the fear inside me was different.
Someone knew something about my daughter that I didn’t.
And that terrified me.
My phone rang.
Claire.
I answered.
“Where are you?””
There was silence.
Then her voice.
“Somewhere you won’t let me explain.””
“You mean somewhere you can’t lie.””
She took a breath.
“I expected you to hate me.””
“I don’t know what I feel.””
“That’s fair.””
“Why did you search Lily’s room?””
Her voice became quieter.
“Because I found something after we got married.””
“What?””
“A letter.””
“From Emma?””
“Yes.””
My jaw tightened.
“Why didn’t you tell me?””
“Because I was afraid.””
“Afraid of what?””
“That you would see me as a threat.””
I looked back at the storage unit.
“That’s exactly what you became.””
“I know.””
Her answer surprised me.
No argument.
No defense.
Just acceptance.
“Claire, why did you have the DNA test?””
Another silence.
Then:
“Because Emma wrote about him.””
“Who?””
“Lily’s biological father.””
I closed my eyes.
“Tell me his name.””
Claire hesitated.
“I need you to promise me something.””
“What?””
“Promise you won’t let anyone take Lily away while we figure this out.””
My chest tightened.
“Claire.””
“Promise me.””
I looked toward the window of the storage unit.
Inside, Lily was sitting with my mother.
My little girl.
My entire world.
“I promise.””
Claire exhaled.
“His name is Michael.””
The name meant nothing.
“Who is Michael?””
“That’s the problem.””
“Claire.””
“He’s not a stranger.””
My heart started pounding.
“What does that mean?””
She whispered:
“He’s someone you know.””
I felt sick.
“Who?””
Claire didn’t answer immediately.
Then she said:
“Your best friend.””
The phone almost slipped from my hand.
“My best friend?””
“Yes.””
I couldn’t speak.
Because there was only one person she could mean.
The man who had stood beside me at my wedding.
The man who had helped me paint Lily’s nursery.
The man who had cried with me at Emma’s funeral.
Jason.
“No.””
Claire’s voice broke.
“Mark, I’m sorry.””
“No.””
“I have proof.””
“I don’t want proof.””
“You need it.””
I looked at the storage unit.
At Lily.
At the life I thought I understood.
“Send me everything.””
A few seconds later, my phone buzzed.
A file appeared.
A DNA report.
I opened it.
The names were listed.
Emma Carter.
Lily Carter.
Michael Reed.
The probability percentage was impossible to ignore.
99.99%.
My vision blurred.
Then another message appeared.
From Claire.
*“There’s something else. Emma didn’t hide this from you because she was ashamed. She hid it because Michael threatened to take Lily.””*
I looked up.
And suddenly I understood.
May you like
Emma wasn’t protecting me from a secret.
She was protecting Lily from someone who wanted her.
