“You offered money if I disappeared. Your family called me greedy. Your new fiancée said I was ruining your life. And I refused to beg.”
Daniel closed his eyes.
Victoria.
Of course.
“I was going to fight,” Emily said. “But then I had complications. The doctors told me to avoid stress or I could lose the baby. So I chose peace instead of war.”
She stepped aside, opening the door wider.
“I didn’t want your money. I wanted a life.”
Daniel stepped inside.
The apartment was small but clean. Bills, medicine, schoolbooks—everything spoke of effort and quiet struggle.
“And Ethan?” he asked. “How did they meet?”
“Lily got a partial scholarship two years ago. That’s where they met. At first, just classmates. Then friends. Then he started helping her… more than I expected.”
Daniel swallowed.
“Does he know?”
Emily nodded.
“He knows she’s his sister.”
That hit harder than anything.
“And he didn’t tell me?”
“Because your son admires you… and is a little afraid of you. Kids like that stay quiet.”
Daniel thought about the late afternoons, the excuses, the missing money, the shared lunches.
Shame settled deep in his chest.
“I thought someone was taking advantage of him.”
Emily met his eyes.