Chapter 14 - What the Paper Could Prove
"This paper can't make the last few weeks disappear," Ethan told her. "Whatever it says, I'm not walking out of your life."
Lucy glanced at Olivia, who nodded.
Then she opened it.
The report confirmed what her mother had told them.
Ethan Pierce was her father.
Lucy read the conclusion twice.
"Okay," she said.
Then she started crying.
Ethan knelt beside her chair, and she threw both arms around his neck.
"Okay," he whispered back.
The report went into a folder. The work of becoming a family stayed on the calendar.
There were missed exits on school mornings. Homework arguments. Counseling appointments. Once, Ethan arrived forty minutes late because a meeting ran over. Lucy didn't speak during the ride home.
He apologized, changed how his afternoons were scheduled, and came early the next day.
Olivia got stronger slowly. Some afternoons she could walk around the block. Others, getting dressed exhausted her.
Ethan learned to ask whether she wanted help before reaching for her coat.
Ten months after the ruined wedding, Victoria pleaded guilty to charges involving the diverted foundation funds and her attempt to force Olivia's silence. The records, the recent note, and the banking trail had left her little room to bargain.
The audit cleared Olivia of the transfers blamed on her.
At sentencing, Victoria looked toward Ethan.
"I loved you," she said.
He didn't answer. The judge had asked about the people harmed, and she was still talking only to him.
She received a prison sentence and an order to repay stolen funds.
Walter's cooperation did not erase his part. He admitted falsifying records, surrendered his position, and faced his own sentence and restitution obligations.
Outside the courthouse, he approached Ethan.
"I don't expect you to trust me."
"Good."
"May I write to Lucy?"
"I'll ask her. If she says no, that's the answer."
For once, Walter didn't negotiate.
That evening, Olivia cooked dinner while Ethan dried the dishes. Lucy finished her homework at the table.
Nothing in the room looked like a victory photograph.
There were bills beside the toaster. Olivia needed to sit halfway through cooking. Ethan broke a cheap glass and swept up every piece.
Lucy watched them and smiled anyway.
Later, she caught sight of a small jewelry box inside Ethan's open coat pocket.
May you like
Her smile vanished.
"Dad," she said. "Are you getting married?"
