Chapter 2: The Name on the Envelope
It was Paul.
My husband was standing in my classroom doorway — as Lily's father.
My legs went weak.
I grabbed the edge of my desk.
"You know each other?" Lily looked between us, confused.
Paul's face had gone completely white.
"I can explain," he said quietly.
"Explain what?" My voice came out strange, like it belonged to someone else.
"Paul.
Look at her.
Look at her eyes."
He looked away.
That was when I knew he had already seen it.
He had always known.
"How long?" I asked.
He said nothing.
"How long have you known about her?"
Lily stood up slowly.
"What's happening?
Why are you saying her name like that?"
I turned to her.
My hands were shaking.
"Lily…
what's your full name?"
She hesitated.
"Lily Margaret Chen."
The room went silent.
Margaret.
He had named her Margaret.
Paul finally looked at me — and what I saw in his eyes was not surprise.
It was grief.
And guilt.
And something he had been carrying for a very long time.
"There's something I never told you," he said.
"About the night Maggie was admitted.
About what the hospital told me."
He reached into his jacket and pulled out an envelope.
It was old.
The edges were worn soft.
My name was written on the front in his handwriting.
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What's inside that envelope — and what did Paul hide for eight years?
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The truth is more heartbreaking than anyone expected.
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