Eric let out a bitter laugh. “And why would I trust you over my own father?”
Those words left me frozen. I knew he wouldn’t believe me, but hearing it hurt more than I thought it would.
“So, what now?” I asked, my voice raw. “Are you planning to throw us out of this house?”
At that, Mr. Carter exploded, standing up from his chair. “So you admit it! I knew Eric shouldn’t have married you in the first place. Raising another man’s kid for three years! What are you going to do to pay us back?”
Mrs. Carter chimed
“Exactly I treated you and Noah like family, only to find out I was being lied to. Do you have any shame?”
I couldn’t hold back anymore. “When did I admit to anything? You’re all just making accusations without proof. What do you want from me?”
Smack!
Eric’s hand met my face in a sharp slap.
He glared at me. “I’m giving you one last chance to tell the truth. Who is Noah’s father? If you stay silent, I’ll make sure the whole town hears what you’ve done.”
I rubbed my stinging cheek, my voice full of defiance. “Go ahead and tell them. I have nothing to hide.”
Eric grabbed my collar, his voice full of venom. “You think you can make a fool out of me? How long has this been going on? I should have known better than to marry a woman like you!”
I closed my eyes. “Fine. Let’s get a divorce. I’ll take Noah since none of you care about him anyway.”
The idea of divorce seemed to set Eric off completely. “Oh, you’d love that, wouldn’t you? Take your bastard child and leave. Get out! I don’t want to see either of you again. I should have smothered him at birth.”
In all the years I’d known him, I’d never heard Eric say anything so cruel.
Before I could respond, Mrs. Carter stormed into our bedroom and began throwing my things out into the hallway, the noise waking up Noah. He stumbled out of his room, and, spotting Eric, ran toward him. “Daddy! You’re back! I missed you…”
Before he could finish, Eric roughly pushed him away. Noah hit the edge of the table with a sickening thud, a streak of blood appearing on his forehead.
I held Noah close, my heart breaking as he cried. “Eric! He’s three years old! How could you do that?”
Eric’s face remained cold. “Why should I care? I don’t know who he is. If I spared him, it was out of pity. You have no right to judge m
The room was silent. I’d seen this family’s true colors. Mr. Carter pointed to the door. “Get out. All of you. A woman like you and your brat have no place here.”
Mrs. Carter threw my ID onto the floor. “Didn’t you hear him? Leave, and take your bastard with you!”
Noah was still sobbing as I wiped away his tears. Looking around the room one last time, I said, “Eric, I hope you know this is going to come back to haunt you.”
With that, I scooped Noah up and walked out. Even as the door closed behind me, I could hear their hateful curses, each one sharper than the
last.
After taking Noah to St. Vincent’s Medical Center for stitches, I rented a room at The Briarwood Inn, where we spent the rest of the night. He eventually drifted off to sleep, his little face so innocent and oblivious to everything that had happened.
I couldn’t help but wonder how he could possibly lack any genetic link to Mr. Carter. Grandparents and grandchildren share a fourth of their DNA, so something wasn’t adding up.
Thinking it over, I decided to go to Memorial Public Hospital to ask some questions. The next day, after dropping Noah off at Little Pines Preschool, I went to the hospital. While waiting, I studied a chart about blood types and heredity, noticing something strange.
