Chapter 3

I stared at Emily, and my voice turned cold. "I didn't want Lucas?

"I woke up after giving birth and asked where my baby was. I cried until I passed out. You were right there in the hospital. How could you not know?"

Emily was left speechless.

My mom immediately stepped in, shielding Emily from me. "Why do you keep bringing up the past? You're pregnant now. Don't put yourself through this again."

I lowered my head and touched my abdomen.

This pregnancy hadn't come easily.

I thought it meant I had eventually moved on. But now it had become their excuse to push me aside.

I raised my eyes to David. "Choose."

His brows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

I placed a hand over my abdomen and spoke slowly, each word clear. "Lucas, or this baby I'm carrying. Choose one."

The room fell completely silent.

My mom's face twisted with disbelief. "Sarah, are you out of your mind?"

My dad snapped. "What kind of mother says something like that about her own kids?"

But I kept my eyes fixed on David. "I'm not threatening you. I want to know what this child and I mean to you."

David's expression darkened, and anger flashed in his eyes. "You're using the baby to threaten me?"

I looked at him calmly. "You took my son away from me for five years. I'm only asking you one simple question."

David said nothing. And his silence was the answer.

I slowly closed my eyes, feeling like there was a gaping emptiness in my chest.

*****

The day I was discharged from the hospital, nobody mentioned Lucas again.

My mom stayed by Emily's side. My dad carried Lucas. David followed behind me with a bag of medication.

I felt like I was the outsider nobody wanted around in this family.

When we got home, the first thing I did was search for my marriage certificate, but I couldn't find it anywhere.

I stood there in the living room, clutching an empty folder, staring at David.

"Where's our marriage certificate?" I asked.

He stood by the doorway and remained silent for a long time.

Dad was the first one to speak. "Why are you looking for that now?"

I ignored him, keeping my eyes locked on David. "Tell me."

David looked up. His voice was low and heavy. "That certificate isn't real."

I froze, thinking I had heard him wrong. "What did you say?"

David swallowed hard. "When Lucas needed his paperwork filed five years ago, some documents were altered.

"You and I were never legally married. The person listed on the certificate is Emily."

The folder slipped from my hand and hit the floor.

It was a quiet sound, but it shattered the last thing I had been holding onto.

I stared at David for a long time before I could speak. "So I'm not your wife?"

He looked away, not saying a word. But that silence told me everything.

I laughed, but my eyes filled with tears. "So for five years, I walked around with a fake certificate, believing I was Mrs. Reed.

"Meanwhile, you and Emily had a real marriage certificate, raising my son and watching me fall apart day after day."

Emily's eyes turned red, and her voice trembled. "Sarah, it's not what you think. We did it for the child."

I turned to her. "For the child? Is that a good reason you lied to his real mother?"

I grabbed a mug from the table and threw it onto the floor. It shattered, and my mom screamed.

"Sarah!" David rushed over and grabbed my wrist. "Don't scare Lucas."

I pulled my arm away, my head pounding. "How dare you?

"I woke up after giving birth and asked you where my baby was. You held me and told me he was gone. You told me we would have another child someday.

"David, how could you say that to me?"

His expression changed. But I couldn't stop. "You went with me to see the therapist. When she asked if I kept hearing a baby cry, you sat right there and answered for me.

"You knew the entire time that our son was in this house. How could you do this to me?"

David reached toward me, but I shoved him away.

The tears came slowly as my voice dropped to a whisper. "Give me back my son. Give me back Lucas."

The moment the words left my mouth, a heavy slap crashed across my face.

My head whipped to the side, my ears ringing from the blow.

My dad was the one who hit me.

His chest was heaving, his face contorted with rage. "Are you done?

"Your sister already tried to slit her wrists. And that boy is terrified because of you. Do you want to push both of them over the edge before you're finally satisfied?"

I slowly turned my face back to him, meeting his gaze.

When I was little and got the highest score on a test, Emily cried, and he told me to hide my report card so I wouldn't upset her.

When I saved money to buy a house, Emily wanted to open a flower shop, and Mom told me to help her first.

Now Emily had taken my child and my marriage, and they still believed I was the cruel one.

Suddenly, I didn't feel like crying anymore.

I fixed my gaze on my dad and asked softly, "Dad, I'm your daughter too. Do you remember that?"

My dad froze. My mom turned her face away and refused to meet my eyes.

David stood nearby and reached out to touch my face.

I stepped back. My eyes were cold as I looked at everyone in the room. "Don't ever say we're family again. I don't have a family like this."