Page 192 of Scandalous Contract

“Yes, it is. Call Ronnie. Let him help you come up with a plan. That’s who I always call when I need a plan.”

I blinked at her. “You’re really okay with this?”

She nodded without hesitation. “I just want my mom, who loves me so much, to be happy.”

I hugged her again, my voice barely a whisper. “Thank you, baby. But sweetie, do you want to talk about what happened last night?”

She shook her head. “I was naïve and trusted someone you told me to stay away from. That was my fault. It won’t happen again. I promise, Mom.”

She was taking this much better than expected.

“And as for the adoption part...” She went silent. “Aunt Abby brought up adoption a few years ago. You were in the other room, getting some fruit, and she asked me if I would freak out if I learned I was adopted.”

I saw red. “She what?”

“Yeah. I told her that I wouldn’t freak out because there was no way I was adopted. And she just smiled.”

“When was this?”

“I think I was in tenth grade.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

India swallowed. “I didn’t want you to leave me.”

This child.I pulled her close again, and another round of tears followed. After a few minutes, she returned to her own seat, both of us emotionally wrung out.

“This is a lot to take in,” I said. “I know you say you’re okay, but I think we should see a therapist. Together. And separately. Work through this the right way. Are you okay with that?”

India nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

I kissed her cheek and smiled, and for the first time in what felt like forever, I felt like I had my daughter back. And maybe, just maybe, could get my man back too. There was just one more person I needed to talk to first.

But that could wait. All weekend, I kept my eyes on my child, monitoring her, making sure she had plenty of fluids. I even had her take two days off from school so I could keep an eye on her.

We talked more about the adoption. She was hiding the pain well, but I caught her crying a couple of times. That was to be expected. Hudson had dropped a bomb on her. If I could bring him back to life and kill him with my own hands, I would.

I made sure I told her I loved her as many times as I could. And we went through the photo album and we cried as we stared at her baby pictures and pics of us with my mom. She even called my mom and cried on the phone with her.

My mom hopped in her car and drove over, joining us for the weekend. Hudson had revealed a deep secret. But he couldn’t break our deep bond. India Adams was loved and protected by me and my mother.

We’d poured into her and made sure her roots were strong. So when the storm came, sure, she swayed and bent a little. But she didn’t break. Our love kept her strong. Her love kept me strong. And nothing would ever destroy our bond.

Wednesday, I took her back to school, and we promised to start therapy together next month. Hudson was dead and gone. But we were still here. We would live. We would love. We would thrive. The same couldn’t be said for Archie, Lanissa, and Hudson.

I guess evil didn’t win all the time.

***

IT TOOK ME A FEW DAYSto work up the nerve to make the phone call. I stared at her number in my phone for a solid ten minutes before I pressed call. I hadn’t spoken to her since the day we found out our daughters were roommates. She’d given me her number, but I hadn’t had a reason to use it until now. My heart pounded while the phone rang.

“Hello?”

“Hi, Mrs. Cattaneo... it’s Stefanie Adams.”

A pause. Then a soft, “Well, hello, Stefanie. This is a pleasant surprise.”

For now. She may not think that later.