Chapter 5: The Secret Between Two Women
Lily opened the door.
Only a little.
Claire stood in the hallway.
For once, she looked tired.
Not perfect.
Not controlled.
Just tired.
“You helped her write it?””
Claire nodded.
Lily stared.
“Why?””
Claire looked down.
“Because she wanted someone to know the truth.””
“Then why didn’t you tell me?””
Claire’s expression shifted.
“Because the truth is complicated.””
Lily almost laughed.
Adults always said that when the truth was something they didn’t want to explain.
“My mom trusted you?””
Claire looked away.
“Yes.””
The answer surprised Lily.
She expected denial.
An excuse.
Something cruel.
Not that.
“How?””
Claire slowly walked into the room after Lily stepped back.
“Your mother and I were friends before we became enemies.””
Lily frowned.
“Enemies?””
Claire sat at the edge of the chair.
“Your mother was brilliant.””
The way she said it sounded almost painful.
“She was kind. She noticed things about people. Things they didn’t want noticed.””
“What things?””
Claire looked at Lily.
“Things about your father.””
Lily felt a strange pressure in her chest.
“What did she notice?””
Claire was quiet for a moment.
Then she said:
“That he was changing.””
Lily sat on the bed.
“Because of you?””
Claire didn’t defend herself.
That hurt more.
“Yes.””
The honesty shocked Lily.
“You’re admitting it?””
“I’m admitting I was part of something that hurt your mother.””
Lily looked at the letter.
“Then why did she trust you?””
Claire’s eyes moved toward the paper.
“Because at the end, she knew I wasn’t the person she thought I was.””
“What does that mean?””
Claire’s face tightened.
“It means I made a mistake.””
“What mistake?””
Claire stood.
“I came into your family thinking I was helping myself.””
Lily waited.
“But then your mother got sick.””
A silence followed.
“And everything changed.””
Lily watched her.
“Tell me.””
Claire looked toward the window.
“The night your mother went to the hospital, she called me.””
Lily’s fingers tightened around the blanket.
“Why would she call you?””
“Because she knew I was the only person who knew the whole story.””
“What story?””
Claire turned back.
“The story of how your father and I met.””
Lily felt sick.
“Mom knew?””
“Yes.””
“And she was okay with it?””
Claire shook her head.
“No.””
The answer was immediate.
“She wasn’t.””
Lily swallowed.
“Then why didn’t she hate you?””
Claire’s eyes became glassy.
“Because your mother was better than me.””
The room became silent.
“She was angry,” Claire continued.
“She was hurt. But she wasn’t cruel.””
Lily looked down.
That sounded like her mother.
Always finding a way to understand people.
Even when they hurt her.
“What happened that night?””
Claire didn’t answer immediately.
And Lily noticed.
A person remembering something painful looked away.
A person hiding something looked for the right words.
Claire was searching.
Finally, she spoke.
“Your mother told me she found proof.””
“Proof of what?””
Claire looked at her.
“Your father had been keeping something from both of us.””
The words made Lily’s heart pound.
“What?””
“Money.””
Lily frowned.
“Money?””
Claire nodded.
“Your father had been moving money without telling your mother.””
“Why?””
“I don’t know.””
“But Mom knew?””
“Yes.””
“Did she tell you?””
“She showed me the documents.””
Lily looked at the letter.
Her mother had written about something changing.
Not just a fight.
Something bigger.
“Where are those documents now?””
Claire became still.
Lily noticed.
“You know.””
Claire didn’t respond.
“You know where they are.””
Before Claire could answer, the bedroom door opened.
Daniel stood there.
His face was pale.
“How much did you tell her?””
Claire turned.
“Enough.””
Daniel’s voice dropped.
“You had no right.””
Lily stood.
“No.””
Both adults looked at her.
“No more.””
Her voice shook.
But she didn’t stop.
“You don’t get to decide what I know anymore.””
Daniel looked hurt.
“I’m trying to protect you.””
“You’re trying to protect yourself.””
The words hit him.
And Lily immediately saw the pain on his face.
But she didn’t take them back.
Because for the first time, they were true.
Daniel looked at Claire.
“What else did you tell her?””
Claire answered quietly.
“She asked about the documents.””
Daniel went completely still.
“What documents?””
Lily noticed.
That was the first time her father looked confused.
Not angry.
Not prepared.
Confused.
“You don’t know?””
Claire stared at him.
And suddenly Lily understood.
There were secrets between them too.
Daniel looked at Claire.
“What documents are you talking about?””
Claire’s face drained of color.
“Daniel…”
“No.””
His voice became colder.
“What did you find?””
Nobody answered.
Then Lily’s phone, sitting on the bed, suddenly vibrated.
All three of them looked at it.
A message.
From an unknown number.
Lily picked it up.
There was only one sentence.
*Your mother didn’t die because she was sick.*
Her hands went numb.
Below the message was a photo.
A photograph of her mother.
Taken the night she went to the hospital.
Standing beside someone Lily had never expected to see.
May you like
Her father.
And Claire.
