Chương 8
Leo studied his face. “You already had Caleb?”
“Caleb was born later.”
“So you learned.”
“I’m still learning.”
“Are you good at it?”
Rachel made a small choking sound into her coffee.
Adrian looked toward her. “Apparently this meeting has no rules for cruelty.”
“It was a fair question.”
Leo waited.
“Sometimes,” Adrian said. “I make his lunch when he tells me. I forget school theme days. I work too much. I apologize badly.”
“Do you yell?”
“Sometimes.”
“At Caleb?”
“Sometimes.”
“Does he get scared?”
Adrian did not look away. “He has.”
Rachel’s hand became still around her cup.
“I’m working on that,” Adrian said.
Leo took a sip of water. “My mom yells when she’s scared too.”
“Leo.”
“You do.”
Rachel’s mouth tightened, but she did not deny it.
The waitress returned. Adrian ordered coffee. No one ordered food.
Leo touched the white lace on his right shoe. “Are you doing a test?”
“Only if you and your mother agree.”
“Does it hurt?”
“A swab inside the cheek.”
“Can it be wrong?”
“Not usually if it’s done correctly.”
“Who sees it?”
“The lab, your mother, me, and whoever your mother agrees can see it.”
“Your mom?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because this is not her decision.”
Leo’s eyes stayed on him.
“Was it before?” he asked.
Adrian felt Rachel turn toward him.
“I let it be,” he said.
The waitress placed the coffee on the table. A little spilled into the saucer. She apologized, and Adrian told her it was fine. The interruption gave him time to breathe.
“I was far away,” he continued. “I was injured. I trusted the wrong person with things I should have protected myself.”
“Grandma?”
“Yes.”
“Caleb says she buys the school computers.”
“She donated money.”
“Can she get us in trouble?”
The question was quiet.
Rachel closed her eyes briefly.
“No,” Adrian said.
He knew immediately that he had promised something beyond his control.
Leo knew it too.
“You said no promises,” he reminded him.
Adrian looked at Rachel. “You’re right.”
Leo picked at the paper wrapper on his straw. “You can say you’ll try.”
“I will try to make sure she cannot hurt you.”
“That’s still almost a promise.”
“It’s the best honest answer I have.”
Leo nodded.
They agreed to the test.
The laboratory appointment took place the following Tuesday at a clinic Rachel selected. She read every form before signing and crossed out permission for marketing contact. Adrian waited without rushing her.
Leo asked the technician whether people ever tried to trick the test.
The technician said they required identification and watched the samples being sealed.
“People still try,” Leo said.
“They do,” she admitted.
He accepted that answer.
Afterward, Adrian offered lunch. Rachel refused. Leo looked disappointed but said nothing.
In the parking lot, Adrian handed Rachel a copy of his identification and the laboratory receipt.
“What is this for?” she asked.
“So you have the same records I do.”
“You think paper makes this equal?”
“No.”
She stared at him for a moment, then took the documents.
The results would take several business days.
During that wait, Evelyn moved first.
She arrived at Adrian’s office without an appointment and closed the door behind her.
“You submitted to a paternity test.”
Adrian looked up from his computer. “How do you know?”
“My name is still associated with the family insurance office.”
“I paid privately.”
“Nothing in this city is private.”
“That is not an answer.”
Evelyn sat across from him. “Rachel called the clinic.”
“She had every right.”
“Do you know who owns the building?”
Adrian did not.
Evelyn did.
The knowledge made him tired.
“You will not contact her,” he said.
“I have no intention of rewarding this performance.”
“Contacting her includes sending lawyers, staff, intermediaries, friends, donors, school officials, or anyone who believes they owe you a favor.”
Evelyn’s expression cooled. “You speak as though I am dangerous.”
“You are.”
The bluntness struck her.
She removed her gloves and arranged them across her purse. “I protected you.”
“You forged a letter.”
“You have no evidence of that.”
“You knew the name Leo.”
“You told me.”
“I told you in private.”
“You discussed Rachel endlessly. It was difficult not to know everything.”
“Did you tell her I wanted an abortion?”
Evelyn glanced toward the window. “I told her you understood the practical reality.”
“That is not what she heard.”
“She heard what she needed to hear.”
“To do what you wanted.”
“To prevent three lives from being ruined.”
“Which three?”
“You, the child, and Rachel.”
Adrian leaned forward. “The child walked three miles barefoot to return a pair of shoes.”
Something flickered across Evelyn’s face. “That is not my responsibility.”
“No. That’s the arrangement, isn’t it? You decide everyone’s life, and none of it is your responsibility.”
“She accepted the money.”
“You offered it while telling her I had rejected her.”
“She could have refused.”
“She was pregnant, alone, and believed I was threatening her with harassment charges.”
Evelyn’s lips pressed together. “Martin should never have used that language.”
The admission entered the room quietly.
Adrian sat back.
“You knew about the letter.”
“I knew counsel communicated boundaries.”
“With my forged signature.”
“I did not forge anything.”
“Who did?”
“I am finished with this conversation.”
“No, you aren’t.”
He opened the altered authorization form on his screen and turned it toward her.
Evelyn looked at it without surprise.
“I signed the first page,” Adrian said. “I did not see the second.”
“You signed the document.”
“Was the second page attached?”
“You were leaving the country. There were dozens of forms.”
“That is not an answer.”
“It is the only one you will receive.”
She stood.
Adrian remained seated. “If Leo is my son, I will acknowledge him.”
Evelyn’s hand tightened around her purse.
May you like
“Think carefully,” she said. “A claim like this affects Caleb. It affects Julia. It affects your position. Your clearance review. The foundation. Every newspaper that enjoys turning private failure into public morality.”
“He is not a private failure.”
