Chapter 8 - THE LITTLE GIRL WHO THOUGHT I WAS DEAD
Grace Bennett was eleven years old.
She loved drawing horses.
She hated mushrooms.
And she believed her older sister Eleanor had died in a car accident before she was born.
I learned that from the school's counselor before I met her.
The knowledge broke me.
My father hadn't simply hidden her from me.
He'd erased me from her life.
Luca traveled with me to Wisconsin.
Rebecca coordinated with the authorities and the school's administration to ensure the visit was lawful and appropriate.
I didn't want to frighten Grace.
I didn't want to burst into her life and demand affection simply because we shared blood.
I wanted to give her what nobody had ever given me.
A choice.
We waited in a small office overlooking the school courtyard.
Children ran across the grass.
Some carried backpacks.
Others played basketball.
For a moment, I imagined Grace among them.
Wondering why her family never visited.
Then the door opened.
A little girl stepped inside.
Dark hair.
Brown eyes.
A small dimple beside her left cheek.
She looked so much like my mother that my breath caught.
Grace stared at me.
"Hello?"
I stood slowly.
"Hi."
She looked toward the counselor.
"Who is she?"
The woman smiled gently.
"Grace, this is Eleanor."
Grace frowned.
"Eleanor?"
I nodded.
"Yes."
Her eyes widened.
"But Eleanor's dead."
Tears filled my eyes.
"No, sweetheart."
She stepped backward.
"That's not funny."
"I know."
I swallowed.
"I'm sorry."
For several seconds, she stared at me.
Then whispered, "You look like Mom."
I nearly broke.
"Do you remember her?"
Grace nodded.
"A little."
She looked down.
"She used to sing to me."
My heart tightened.
"What song?"
Grace hesitated.
Then softly hummed a melody.
My mother's lullaby.
The song she'd sung to me when I was little.
I covered my mouth.
Grace stopped.
"Are you crying?"
I nodded.
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because our mother used to sing that song to me too."
Grace's eyes filled.
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
Then she stepped closer.
"Are you really my sister?"
I knelt.
"Yes."
She studied me.
Then asked a question that shattered my heart.
"Why didn't you come get me?"
I began crying.
"Because nobody told me you existed."
Her lips trembled.
"Did you want me?"
I took a breath.
"More than you can imagine."
Grace stared at me.
Then threw herself into my arms.
I held her carefully.
She cried against my shoulder.
And for the first time in eleven years, I felt something inside me begin to heal.
But our reunion ended when the counselor received a phone call.
Her expression changed.
She turned toward Rebecca.
"There's a problem."
My stomach tightened.
"What?"
"The school has received instructions to release Grace to an authorized guardian."
I looked toward Luca.
His face hardened.
"Who?"
May you like
The counselor swallowed.
"Andrew Keller."
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