Chapter 7: The Voice on the Phone
Maya stopped rocking Lily.
“My father is dead.””
Richard still held the phone against his chest.
“No,” he said.
Maya stared at him.
“My father died before I was born. My mother told me that my entire life.””
Richard’s eyes moved toward Victor.
Victor looked grim.
“She told you what she had to.””
Maya laughed once, but there was no humor in it.
“Apparently that’s what everyone in this room did.””
The phone rang again.
Richard flinched.
Maya stepped toward him.
“Give it to me.””
“No.””
“Richard.””
“You don’t understand.””
“Then let me understand.””
Richard tightened his grip.
Thomas moved closer.
“Give her the phone.””
Richard looked at him.
“You have no idea who you’re dealing with.””
Thomas’s jaw tightened.
“I know exactly who it is.””
Daniel turned sharply.
“You know Maya’s father?””
Thomas didn’t answer immediately.
That hesitation was enough.
Maya’s voice dropped.
“Who is he?””
Thomas looked at her.
“A man named Adrian Cole.””
Victor closed his eyes.
Daniel repeated the name.
“Adrian Cole.””
Something about it felt familiar.
Then Evelyn whispered from the pew:
“Oh, God.””
Daniel looked at her.
“You know him too?””
Evelyn nodded.
“He worked at the hospital.””
Victor corrected her.
“He owned part of it.””
Maya’s face hardened.
“My father owned the hospital where all of this happened?””
“Not exactly,” Victor said.
“His family controlled the private medical group that managed it.””
The phone stopped ringing.
For two seconds, the cathedral was silent.
Then a message arrived.
Richard looked down.
His face drained of color.
Maya reached for the phone.
Richard pulled it away.
She snapped.
“Stop deciding what I’m allowed to know!””
Lily began crying.
Maya immediately softened her voice.
“I’m sorry, baby.””
She kissed Lily’s forehead.
Daniel stepped closer instinctively.
“Let me help.””
Maya looked at him.
“With what?””
Daniel stopped.
Her eyes were wet.
“You left when she needed you. You secretly tested her. You planned to marry another woman while I was raising her alone.””
“I know.””
“No, Daniel. You know the facts. You don’t know what it felt like.””
Daniel lowered his head.
Maya turned back to Richard.
“The phone.””
Richard finally handed it over.
The message contained only an address and six words:
BRING MAYA. NO POLICE. COME ALONE.
Maya stared at it.
Daniel read over her shoulder.
“No.””
She looked at him.
“What?””
“You’re not going.””
“You don’t get a vote.””
“Maya, this man has been hiding for decades.””
“And apparently everyone here knows why except me.””
Thomas stepped closer.
“You shouldn’t meet Adrian alone.””
Maya looked at him.
“Why?””
Thomas hesitated.
“Because he can be dangerous.””
Daniel immediately moved beside Maya.
“Then she definitely isn’t going.””
Maya’s anger flashed.
“I said you don’t get a vote.””
“I don’t care.””
She stared at him.
For a moment, something familiar passed between them.
The Daniel she had once loved had sounded exactly like that when she went into labor during a thunderstorm.
Terrified.
Protective.
Stubborn.
But that Daniel had disappeared.
Maya looked away.
Victor took the phone.
He examined the address.
“I know this place.””
Richard’s expression changed.
“Victor.””
“It’s the old Cole residence in Pasadena.””
Thomas stared at him.
“That house is still standing?””
Victor nodded.
“Barely.””
Maya looked at Lily.
“I’m going.””
“No,” Richard said.
She turned.
“Why are you so afraid of him?””
Richard looked at her for a long moment.
“Because Adrian didn’t disappear willingly.””
Thomas frowned.
“What does that mean?””
Richard rubbed his forehead.
“After Anna died, Adrian discovered the hospital records had been altered.””
Victor watched him.
“You mean after you altered them.””
Richard nodded.
“He threatened to expose everything.””
Maya asked, “So what happened?””
Richard’s eyes filled with shame.
“I paid him.””
Thomas stepped forward.
“You what?””
“I gave him enough money to leave California.””
“You bought his silence?””
“I thought I was protecting Daniel.””
Thomas grabbed Richard’s jacket.
“You protected yourself!””
Daniel pulled them apart.
“Enough!””
Thomas pointed at Richard.
“He knew Anna died believing her child was gone.””
Richard shouted back.
“I didn’t know the child survived!””
Victor suddenly spoke.
“Yes, you did.””
Everyone turned.
Richard froze.
Victor reached into his coat and removed a small notebook.
“I kept copies.””
Richard stared at it.
“What is that?””
“The original night log.””
Evelyn covered her mouth.
Victor continued.
“Anna’s baby did not die.””
Thomas’s eyes filled with tears.
Victor looked directly at Maya.
“She was removed from the hospital before sunrise.””
Maya’s hands went cold.
“By whom?””
Victor glanced toward Richard.
“Adrian Cole.””
Maya shook her head.
“Why would my father steal a baby?””
Victor’s expression softened.
“Because he believed the baby was his.””
The words silenced the room.
Thomas stumbled backward.
“No.””
Victor looked at him.
“I’m sorry.””
Thomas stared at Maya.
Maya understood before anyone said it.
“Anna’s baby…”
Victor nodded.
“Was you.””
Maya’s knees nearly gave way.
Daniel caught her elbow.
She didn’t pull away this time.
Not because she forgave him.
Because she could barely stand.
Thomas stared at Maya with tears streaming down his face.
“My sister…”
Maya looked at him.
“If Anna was my mother…”
She swallowed.
“…then Adrian really is my father.””
Victor nodded.
“Yes.””
Thomas covered his mouth.
That meant Maya was his niece.
Daniel stared at Thomas.
Then at Maya.
A terrible realization slowly crossed his face.
Thomas saw it too.
“No.””
Daniel stepped backward.
“If you’re Anna’s brother…”
Maya’s eyes widened.
“And Thomas is your biological father…”
Nobody finished the sentence.
Daniel and Maya stared at each other.
The blood drained from Maya’s face.
“No.””
Victor immediately shook his head.
“Wait.””
But Maya was already trembling.
Daniel whispered:
“Are Maya and I related?””
Victor looked down at the notebook.
“There is one more thing you need to know.””
Before he could explain, the cathedral doors opened again.
A tall gray-haired man stood outside.
Richard dropped the phone.
Maya stared at the stranger.
He looked directly at her.
Then at Lily.
Tears filled his eyes.
“Maya.””
Her heart stopped.
May you like
The stranger took one step inside.
“My daughter.””
