Mark looked down.
"She has disappeared."
Where?
I don't know.
Laura suddenly reached into her bag.
– Yes, indeed.
He produced a folded piece of paper.
"Rebecca sent me this three years ago."
I opened it.
It was only a few lines.
If Emma ever finds out, tell her that I did what I thought was necessary.
She was afraid of losing both children.
I couldn't bear to see another child die.
I'm sorry.
I stared at the words.
It was not forgiveness.
That was no excuse.
But for the first time
I realized that the truth is not as simple as good and evil people.
Everyone was afraid.
Everyone had made their decisions.
And every decision had cost someone something.
The chief approached us in silence.
"Ms. Carter, perhaps you should contact the authorities."
I nodded.
Yes.
This time I wouldn't let anyone dictate my decisions.
There would be investigations.
Medical records.
DNA tests.
Legal issues.
There would be anger.
That would have consequences.
And years of reconstruction would follow.
But when I saw Cole and Stefan sitting next to each other, their shoulders touching, I knew one thing.
My family was broken.
But he hadn't left.
Later that evening we returned home.
Cole ran up the stairs and came back with a small wooden box.
He opened it.
Inside were the few things he had kept from his childhood.
His first hospital bracelet.
Her first photo.
A small blue
knitted hat.
Cole took off his hat.
Mother?
Yes?
“Can Stefan have that?”
I looked at him.
Because?
"Because it should actually belong to him too."
I started crying again.
Stefan smiled.
"Thank you very much".
The two boys sat on the floor and compared their baby photos.
They laughed when they realized that they both had the same ridiculous facial expression in almost all the photos.
