Chapter 2
The moment I said there was another child, Vanessa tried to run.
She turned toward the ballroom's side entrance.
But my sister Rebecca stepped into her path.
"Where are you going?"
Vanessa stopped.
Her expression twisted.
"Move."
Rebecca didn't touch her.
She simply looked at me.
"Marcus?"
I was still holding Amara's letter.
My hands wouldn't stop shaking.
"Let her leave if she wants," I said. "We need to focus on these children."
Vanessa stared at me.
"You don't understand what you're doing."
I looked directly at her.
"Then explain it."
She opened her mouth.
Nothing came out.
I turned away.
For seven years, a child might have been growing up without me.
Another little girl was barely old enough to open her eyes.
And somewhere, according to the letter, a boy was missing.
My wedding didn't matter anymore.
Rebecca knelt beside Lily.
"Sweetheart, I'm Marcus's sister. My name is Rebecca."
Lily stared at her.
"Are you my aunt?"
Rebecca's eyes filled with tears.
"I might be."
Lily looked at me.
"Mom said Daddy had a sister."
My chest tightened.
Rebecca covered her mouth.
For a moment, I thought she might start crying.
Instead, she smiled gently.
"Would you like me to hold your baby sister while you rest your arms?"
Lily hesitated.
Then nodded.
She carefully transferred the newborn into Rebecca's arms, with Rebecca supporting the baby's head and body.
I immediately asked a hotel employee to bring blankets.
The baby stirred.
Lily watched anxiously.
"Don't let her fall."
Rebecca shook her head.
"I won't."
Lily finally sat down.
She looked smaller than ever.
I crouched beside her.
"When did you last eat?"
She stared at the floor.
"Yesterday."
My stomach twisted.
"Where did you sleep?"
She hesitated.
"At the bus station."
I couldn't breathe.
A seven-year-old girl.
A newborn baby.
Alone at a bus station.
I forced myself to remain calm.
"How did you get here?"
Lily pointed toward the entrance.
"A nice lady brought us."
Rebecca looked up.
"Who?"
Lily swallowed.
"She works at the hospital."
I immediately asked hotel security to locate the woman.
Then I turned toward Lily.
"Where is your mother?"
Her face crumpled.
"She was sick."
I felt cold.
"Where?"
"At the hospital."
I nodded.
"Do you remember which one?"
She shook her head.
"There was a big blue sign."
I tried again.
"Was she awake when you left?"
Lily began crying.
"She was sleeping."
My heart broke.
I stopped asking questions.
She needed medical care and a trained professional to help her tell her story safely.
Within minutes, emergency responders arrived.
The newborn was examined first.
The baby was alert but needed hospital assessment because of her age and the circumstances of the journey.
Lily was exhausted and dehydrated.
I asked to accompany them.
An officer approached before we left.
"Mr. Bennett?"
I nodded.
"I'm Detective Aaron Brooks."
He was a Black man in his late forties, with calm eyes and a steady voice.
"I understand there's a concern about missing children."
I showed him the letter.
He read it carefully.
Then looked toward Vanessa.
"Has anyone preserved the envelope and the related communications?"
I nodded.
"Yes."
He asked Rebecca to keep the original protected until it could be formally collected.
Then he turned toward me.
"We'll begin checking missing-child reports and locating the children's mother."
My throat tightened.
"Please."
He nodded.
"We'll do everything we can within the investigation."
As we prepared to leave, Vanessa approached again.
"Marcus, please."
I looked at her.
She was crying.
For one terrible moment, I remembered the woman who'd held my hand while we planned our wedding.
The woman who promised to build a family with me.
Now I couldn't even recognize her.
"Why did you go to Amara's house?"
Vanessa looked down.
"I was trying to protect us."
I stared.
"From a child?"
She began sobbing.
"Marcus, you don't know what Amara did."
My stomach tightened.
"What did she do?"
Vanessa glanced toward the detective.
Then stopped speaking.
I felt something cold settle inside me.
"Tell him whatever you know," I said. "I'm going to the hospital."
I walked away.
Behind me, I heard Vanessa calling my name.
I didn't turn.
At the hospital, Lily refused to let me leave the examination room.
Every time I moved toward the door, she became frightened.
"You're coming back?"
I crouched beside her.
"Yes."
She studied my face.
"Really?"
I swallowed.
"Really."
She reached for my hand.
Her fingers were tiny.
I held them gently.
After the medical team finished their initial assessments, the detective returned.
He had located a hospital record matching Amara Lewis.
She was thirty-two now.
She'd been admitted after complications following childbirth.
My chest tightened.
"Is she alive?"
He nodded.
"Yes."
Relief hit me so hard I had to sit down.
For eight years, I'd believed Amara had left me.
Now she was alive.
And apparently trying to reach me.
"Can I see her?"
The detective explained that her medical team would determine when visitors were appropriate.
I nodded.
Then he mentioned something else.
"Mr. Bennett, we've identified the newborn as Rose Lewis."
I looked toward the baby.
"Rose."
He nodded.
"She's Amara's daughter."
I swallowed.
"And Caleb?"
The detective's expression became serious.
"We're looking into that now."
My hands tightened.
Then he asked me something unexpected.
"Did you know Vanessa before you met Amara?"
I frowned.
"No."
He studied me.
"Are you certain?"
I thought carefully.
Then remembered a charity construction project eight years earlier.
A young administrative assistant.
Quiet.
Always smiling.
She'd worked for the company sponsoring the project.
My heart began pounding.
"Wait."
The detective leaned forward.
"What?"
"Vanessa worked at the charity where Amara and I met."
His expression changed.
I swallowed.
"I didn't remember because we barely spoke."
The detective nodded.
Then asked, "Did Vanessa have access to employee contact information?"
I felt cold.
"Possibly."
He wrote something down.
I looked toward Lily.
She was sitting on the hospital bed, watching Rebecca feed Rose with guidance from the nurses.
My throat tightened.
Then my phone vibrated.
A message from an unknown number.
MARCUS, IF YOU WANT TO SEE CALEB ALIVE, STOP ASKING ABOUT VANESSA.
My breath stopped.
I stared at the screen.
Then immediately showed it to Detective Brooks.
May you like
Because someone knew I'd found Lily.
And someone wanted to make sure I never found her little brother.
