Chapter 5 - The Price Diane Put on a Child
Money.
The word transformed everything.
Emily replayed Diane’s statement until she could no longer pretend there might be another interpretation.
If Richard wants the child, he can pay what he owes me first.
Claire paced beside the table.
“She’s using Noah.”
Emily’s hands tightened.
“We don’t know that.”
“Yes, we do.”
“We know she said something horrible. We don’t know what it means.”
Claire stopped.
“You’re doing it again.”
“Doing what?”
“Giving them the most generous possible explanation.”
Emily looked away.
Claire lowered her voice.
“You spent years surviving by assuming there must be a reasonable explanation for unreasonable behavior. There might not be one.”
Emily hated how accurate that sounded.
Her phone vibrated.
Mark.
Twenty-three missed calls.
Seventeen messages.
The newest read:
Mom told me everything. We need to talk about Richard.
Emily stared.
Claire read it.
“Don’t answer.”
“I want to know what he’ll say.”
“He’ll say whatever keeps you from finding the truth yourself.”
Emily knew that.
Still, she called.
Mark answered instantly.
“Emily.”
She heard genuine relief.
“Where are you?”
“Why did you test Noah?”
Silence.
Emily repeated the question.
“Why did you test my son?”
“Our son.”
“Answer me.”
Mark exhaled.
“My mother had concerns.”
“About what?”
“It’s complicated.”
“Try.”
“Richard Vale.”
Emily said nothing.
Mark continued.
“My mother knew him years ago.”
“How well?”
Another silence.
Emily closed her eyes.
“He’s your father.”
Mark’s breath caught.
“How did you know?”
The answer confirmed it.
Emily looked toward Claire.
Claire mouthed, Keep him talking.
“Why did you test Noah?”
Mark’s voice dropped.
“Richard has a hereditary condition.”
“What condition?”
“I don’t know the exact name.”
“You secretly took blood from our child because a stranger you never told me about might have a medical condition?”
“It wasn’t like that.”
“What was it like?”
“My mother said there could be consequences if Richard found out about Noah.”
“What consequences?”
“Financial.”
Emily’s stomach turned.
“There it is.”
“You don’t understand.”
“Then explain.”
Mark hesitated.
“My mother says Richard stole from her.”
“When?”
“Years ago.”
“How much?”
“A lot.”
“What does that have to do with Noah?”
“He contacted her after he found out I had a son.”
“How did he find out?”
“I don’t know.”
“That’s a lie.”
“Emily.”
“Did you send him information?”
“No.”
“Did Diane?”
“No.”
“Did you plan to give him custody of Noah?”
Mark snapped, “Of course not.”
“I saw the document.”
His silence returned.
“Temporary Custody Agreement,” Emily said.
“That wasn’t what you think.”
“It had Noah’s name on it.”
“It was a contingency.”
“For what?”
“If something happened to us.”
“Why did you sign it before Noah was born?”
Mark could not answer quickly enough.
Emily felt rage rising.
“You planned something.”
“No.”
“You planned something involving my child.”
“Emily, listen to me.”
“No. You listen.”
She stood.
“You hit me tonight.”
“I know.”
“Your mother endangered Noah.”
“She lost her temper.”
“And you defended her.”
“I made a mistake.”
“You have made the same mistake for years.”
Mark’s voice softened.
“I love you.”
Emily closed her eyes.
The words had become meaningless.
“Where is the blue folder?”
“What?”
“The custody documents.”
“I destroyed them.”
“Why?”
“Because I changed my mind.”
Emily glanced at Claire.
Changed my mind.
An admission.
“Changed your mind about what?”
Mark caught himself.
“I mean about the contingency.”
“Where are the copies?”
“There aren’t any.”
Another lie.
Emily heard Diane speaking in the background.
Mark covered the phone.
Their voices became muffled.
Claire pointed at the laptop.
A new security notification had appeared.
Living Room Camera Online.
Emily opened the live feed.
Mark and Diane stood in the house.
Mark held his phone.
Diane was whispering furiously.
The audio came through Emily’s laptop because Mark had unknowingly reconnected the camera while resetting the security system.
Diane said, “Find out where she is.”
Mark whispered, “She knows about Richard.”
“You idiot.”
“She found the videos.”
Diane stared toward the camera.
Then her face changed.
She crossed the room quickly.
The screen went black.
But not before Emily saw what Diane was holding.
The blue folder.
“She lied,” Claire whispered.
“No.”
Emily stared at the frozen image.
“Mark lied.”
The phone remained connected.
Mark returned to the call.
“Emily?”
She deliberately kept her voice steady.
“I’m here.”
“We need to solve this together.”
Emily looked at Claire.
Claire understood immediately.
Keep him talking.
Emily said, “Okay.”
Mark relaxed audibly.
“Good.”
“But I need the truth.”
“I told you.”
“No. You told me part of it.”
“What do you want to know?”
Emily stared at the black security screen.
“What was Diane planning to do with Noah?”
Mark did not answer.
Then Emily heard Diane say something faintly in the background.
May you like
A sentence Mark clearly did not want her to hear.
“He was never supposed to stay with Emily anyway.”
