Chapter 4

David knew all about Helen's string of flings over the years, but he never had any right to stop her.

Now, he was too exhausted and too weak to care.

I sat down next to his bed and gave him two pieces of good news. "The doctor says you can go home tomorrow, and Sophie will be back then too."

David's face finally relaxed. He'd been itching to get out of the hospital for ages and waiting for Sophie to come home.

When Sophie got back, Helen, who hadn't shown up in over a week, turned up as well.

As soon as Sophie found out her dad was seriously ill, she broke down in David's arms and cried for a long time. David's eyes were teary too, but he kept comforting her.

Helen stood off to the side, looking a bit lost for once. She was like David, trying to soothe Sophie. The way she looked at Sophie was like she was looking at her own child.

Sophie wiped her tears, turned to Helen, and took her hand. "Aunt Helen, I heard you've been helping out with my dad lately. Thanks for everything you've done."

Helen was grinning from ear to ear. "Oh, sweetheart, we're all family. No need to thank me."

The three of them looked every bit the perfect family, leaving Emily and me standing off to the side like outsiders.

*****

During Sophie's two-month summer break at home, Helen hardly ever left the place. She stuck around with Sophie, and the two of them took care of David together.

I often saw the three of them chatting and laughing together. David kept glancing over at Helen and Sophie, his eyes full of delight.

Time flew by, and after Sophie went back to school, Helen left my place too, only showing up now and then.

David's health kept going downhill. In the second month of chemo, all his hair was gone.

Sophie bought him all sorts of wigs and hats.

Most of the time, he only looked at them and rarely wore any. He barely left home anymore.

With the rapid weight loss and the pain from his illness, he grew less and less willing to move.

Lately, I kept noticing something off in David's eyes as he stared at me, as if he'd done something to wrong me.

I wondered what he could have against me. He'd drawn up a will, leaving everything he owned to my daughter Sophie.

*****

Three months later, David, who couldn't even keep water down, suddenly said he was hungry, and his spirits lifted out of nowhere. The caregiver called me in a panic, telling me to come over right away.

We both knew it was a last burst of energy before the end.

I'd been using a business trip as an excuse and hadn't seen him for over half a month.

When I saw David, I was shocked for a second. In half a month, he'd wasted away to nothing but skin and bones.

I sat down in the chair by his bed and asked how he was feeling.

David took my hand, his face so gaunt it was only skin stretched over bones, but he managed a faint smile. "I feel a lot better. It's like all the strength I lost is back."

That was a last burst of energy. It seemed every organ in his body had agreed to give it one final push together.

David knew how bad things were. He stared at me for a long time, then suddenly, tears started streaming down his face.

He choked out, "Grace, I'm so sorry."

He squeezed my hand tighter, but he was so weak that it barely felt like anything to me.

David said, "If I don't tell you this, I'll never be able to rest in peace."

That piqued my curiosity. "David, you didn't do something to betray me, did you?"

David avoided my gaze, and after a long pause, he finally said, "Grace, Sophie is my child with Helen. Back then, while you were unconscious after giving birth, I swapped the two babies."

My vision went black for a moment, and it took me a long time to find my voice. "So you're saying Emily is my daughter?"

David lowered his head, unable to meet my eyes or say a word.

But that was impossible. When Sophie was twelve, I had a DNA test done with her, and the results confirmed she was my daughter.