Chapter 5 - The Diary of Amara
Maya sighed, her expression softening slightly at the sight of my utter devastation. "Come with me to my office, Daniel. It's quiet there."
I followed her like a ghost, my legs numb. She led me into a private, wood-paneled office at the back of the gallery and shut the door, blocking out the chatter of the crowd. She walked over to her desk, unlocked a drawer, and pulled out a worn, leather-bound journal.
"This was Amara’s diary," Maya said, placing it gently on the desk between us. "When you kicked Ethan out, he had nothing but his backpack. Inside that backpack was this diary. He kept it with him through everything. It was his only connection to his mother—and to the truth."
I reached out with trembling hands and picked up the book. The leather was scuffed, the corners frayed. I opened it to a page marked with a dried, pressed flower.
Amara's elegant, sloping handwriting filled the pages.
October 14th Daniel looked at Ethan today with so much coldness. It breaks my heart. He still believes Ethan belongs to Marcus. I see the resentment in his eyes every time Ethan tries to hug him. Why can't he see his own smile in Ethan's laughter? I have ordered the paternity test from the clinic. I will show him the truth on his birthday. I want our family to be whole. I want Daniel to love our son the way he deserves to be loved...
A sob escaped my throat, raw and painful. I pressed my hand to my mouth, trying to stifle the sound, but the tears wouldn't stop.
"She loved you, Daniel," Maya said quietly. "And Ethan loved you too. Even when you were cold to him, he used to draw pictures of you in the margins of his schoolbooks. He wanted so badly to be enough for you."
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"How did he survive?" I cried, looking up at her, my vision blurred. "He was twelve years old! How could a twelve-year-old boy survive on his own?"
"He didn't survive on his own," Maya answered. "He almost didn't survive at all."
