Chapter 7 - The Voice From The Past
The voice on the phone was impossible.
I knew that voice.
I had heard it every morning growing up.
I had heard it when I was sick.
When I was afraid.
When I needed someone to tell me everything would be okay.
My mother's voice.
But that couldn't be true.
My mother had been dead for six years.
I stared at the phone in my hand.
Nobody moved.
Nobody breathed.
Even Victor looked different.
For the first time since entering the house, he looked uncertain.
"Lucas."
The voice came again.
Soft.
Shaking.
Real.
My fingers tightened around the phone.
"Mom?"
The word escaped before I could stop it.
The room went completely silent.
Emma covered her mouth.
The twins looked at me with confusion.
Richard looked like someone had just taken away the last piece of reality he was holding onto.
Then the voice answered.
"Yes."
My knees almost gave out.
I grabbed the edge of the table.
"No."
I shook my head.
"This isn't possible."
A small pause.
Then she whispered:
"I know."
Tears filled my eyes.
I hated myself for believing it.
I hated myself for wanting it to be true.
Because hope was dangerous.
Hope was the thing that hurt the most when it disappeared.
"Where are you?"
My voice cracked.
There was silence.
Then:
"I can't tell you yet."
I closed my eyes.
Of course.
Another secret.
Another person hiding something from me.
"Why?"
My voice became louder.
"Why did everyone keep deciding what I could and couldn't know?"
Nobody answered.
Not my mother.
Not my father.
Not Emma.
Nobody.
Then my mother's voice became quieter.
"Because knowing the truth would have put you in danger."
I looked at Victor.
His expression changed.
"You knew she was alive."
I wasn't asking.
I was accusing.
Victor didn't respond.
That was enough.
I turned toward him.
"You knew."
Victor looked away.
Richard stepped forward.
"Lucas."
I looked at him.
"How many lies are there?"
My father looked destroyed.
"I thought she was dead."
My mother's voice came through the phone.
"Richard."
Everyone froze.
Because she said his name with something I had never heard before.
Disappointment.
"You promised me."
Richard closed his eyes.
"I tried."
"No."
Her voice trembled.
"You protected the wrong people."
I looked at Richard.
"What does that mean?"
Nobody answered.
Then the phone disconnected.
I stared at the screen.
The call was gone.
No number.
No record.
Nothing.
Like it had never happened.
But I had heard her.
I knew I had.
"Lucas."
Emma stepped closer.
I moved back.
Not because I hated her.
Because I didn't know who to trust anymore.
"Did you know?"
Her eyes filled with tears.
"No."
"Did you know she was alive?"
"No."
The answer came instantly.
Too instantly.
I studied her face.
And I believed her.
That was the problem.
After everything, a part of me still believed Emma.
Richard sat down slowly.
His hands were shaking.
"My God."
I looked at him.
"You thought she was dead."
He nodded.
"I did."
"Then who did you bury?"
Richard looked at the floor.
"I don't know."
The sentence made the room colder.
Because it meant even my father's biggest secret had secrets inside it.
Victor suddenly moved toward the table.
He picked up the old envelope.
"Now you understand."
I looked at him.
"Understand what?"
"Your mother didn't die."
He looked at Richard.
"She disappeared."
I stared.
"Why?"
Victor's expression hardened.
"Because she found out who was behind everything."
"Who?"
Victor looked at me.
"I think you already know."
I shook my head.
"No."
He stepped closer.
"The person who changed the fertility records."
My heart started racing.
"The person who separated you and Emma."
My hands clenched.
"The person who made sure you would never discover your children."
Everyone was silent.
Victor whispered:
"The person sitting in this room."
My eyes moved around.
Emma.
Richard.
Victor.
Nobody spoke.
Then Richard suddenly stood.
"Enough."
His voice was different.
Not weak.
Not afraid.
Angry.
"You don't get to come here and destroy everything."
Victor laughed.
"You already destroyed everything."
Richard looked at him.
"You don't know what I sacrificed."
Victor stepped closer.
"You sacrificed your son."
That sentence hit harder than anything else.
I looked at my father.
And for the first time, I wondered if Richard had been protecting me.
Or protecting himself.
"I need the truth."
Everyone looked at me.
"No more pieces."
I pointed at Victor.
"You."
Then Richard.
"You."
Then Emma.
"All of you."
I took a breath.
"Start from the beginning."
Nobody moved.
Then Richard walked toward the old bookshelf.
He reached behind several books.
And pulled out a small wooden box.
I had never seen it before.
"What is that?"
He looked at me.
"Something your mother left."
I stared.
"Another thing?"
Richard nodded.
"But this one was meant for you."
He placed it on the table.
The box had a lock.
A small silver lock.
Richard handed me a key.
I looked at it.
"Where did you get this?"
"Your mother gave it to me."
I looked at him.
"When?"
Richard hesitated.
"The night she disappeared."
The room went silent.
I unlocked the box.
Inside were three things.
A photograph.
A hospital bracelet.
And a document.
I picked up the photograph first.
My hands immediately froze.
It was a picture of my mother.
Standing outside a hospital.
Holding a baby.
A newborn baby.
I looked closer.
Then my entire body went cold.
Because written on the back of the photograph were two words.
"Lucas' brother."
I looked at Richard.
"My brother?"
Nobody answered.
I grabbed the document.
The title was clear.
A birth certificate.
My eyes moved down.
The child's name.
The mother's name.
The father's name.
And when I reached the bottom, I stopped breathing.
Because the father's name was not Richard Carter.
It was a name I had never seen before.
A name that made Victor step backward.
A name that made my mother’s warning suddenly make sense.
And then the front door of the house slowly opened behind us.
Someone whispered:
"Lucas..."
I turned.
Because I recognized the voice.
May you like
It was my mother.
Standing in the doorway.
