Becoming Strangers Again by Lily

RYAN I must have misheard her I had to have. There was simply no possible way my father, the man I had always looked up to and respected, would have done something so reckless, so deceitful. The notion that he could have cheated on my mother, fathered a child outside of their marriage, and then kept that child a secret for so many years-it seemed unthinkable. It was like my brain refused to process the idea; it fought against it, rejecting it as absurd.

"I know this is a lot to take in," she said, her voice calm and even. "I didn't want to tell you anything. My mother didn't want to, either. We've been avoiding this for as long as we could, but we're at a point now where we can't afford to stay silent anymore. We can't be homeless." I looked at her, disbelief and anger churning inside me. "What's your nagain?" I asked, my tone sharp and unforgiving.

"Maya," she answered without hesitation.

"So you expectto believe this story you've chere to tell me?" I demanded, my voice tight with barely contained rage. "You expectto believe that my father-my father-cheated on my mother with your mother? That he had ssecret affair and you're the result of it?" She shrugged, a casual gesture that infuriatedeven more. "I'm not asking you to believe me," she said, her voice almost too calm, too indifferent. "I'm not asking you for anything other than to listen. I'm just stating the facts as they are. Your father did cheat, and I am the product of that affair. Whether you choose to believe it or not is up to you." Maybe she was telling the truth, maybe she wasn't-how was I supposed to know? Either way, it hardly mattered. My mother was already grieving, her heart shattered by my father's sudden death, and I would do whatever it took to protect her from any more pain. I wouldn't let anyone cinto our lives and hurt her more, especially with a sob story like this. Not now, not ever.

"Alright, let's say, just for a moment, that I decide to humor you," I said, intertwining my fingers and resting them on the table between us. I leaned forward, my gaze locked on her. "What exactly is it that you want?" "Don't sell the house," she said without missing a beat.

I stared at her this young woman sitting in front ofwith such boldness-and I couldn't help but chuckle. It was such a small request, but it felt loaded.

"Your mother doesn't have to know about this," she continued. "All you have to do is not sell the house. Just let my mother andcontinue living there. That's all I'm asking." The smile I had on my face-tight and far from genuine-slowly faded. "That sounds an awful lot like a threat to me," I said, my voice low and cold.

She shook her head, her expression sincere. "It's not a threat. I'm just asking you to let us stay where we are. I'm not demanding anything more." Her eyes moved over me, studyingcarefully. "You're this agitated just because I asked you not to sell one property. What would you do if I were to ask you for something more? If I were to demand that you willsof his estate?" My jaw tightened, my teeth clenching together in a desperate attempt to hold back my frustration. "I'd pull out your hair," I said through gritted teeth.

She scoffed. "What is this, a DNA match betweenand you?" she taunted, leaning forward, her gaze growing darker and more sinister. "If we do this DNA test, and it turns out positive, you'd better believe I'll demand a lot more than just lettingstay. I'll demand everything I'm entitled to, and I won't stop until I get it." My eyes narrowed, my anger rising with every word that cout of her mouth. "You've got a lot of threats, don't you?" I hissed, my voice dripping with venom. "One would think you chere prepared." She shrugged, her nonchalance maddening. "Well, now, this is a threat. If you refuse, I won't just ask for sproperties. I'll take the DNA result to every news outlet I can find, and I'll make sure they all know that we share the sfather." I stared at her, my mind racing. Was she insane? Did she truly think she could walk into my life and make demands like this? "The will hasn't been read yet, has it?" she asked, her eyes watchingcarefully. "Who knows? Maybe he leftsomething. Maybe I'm already included." The will hadn't been read because we were still grieving. I was handling my father's business as his only child, and there hadn't seemed to be any rush to read the will. It was something we'd get to when we were ready, but this woman-this stranger-was pushing herself into our lives and making claims she had no right to make.

"Get up," I said, my voice cold.

She chuckled softly as she rose from her seat. "No need to kickout I'm already leaving." She grabbed her purse, her eyes meeting mine one last time. "Think about what I said. Don't sell the property." With that, she turned and walked out of my office, leavingseething.

I stared at the closed door for a long moment, the events of the last few minutes playing over and over in my mind. Did a random woman seriously just walk into my office, claim to be my sister, and threaten me? Scoffing, I reached for my phone, my fingers moving automatically as I dialed Angelo's number.

"There's a family staying at my father's estate in the west," I said when he answered. "I want you to look into them. Find out everything there is to know, and get back to me." "Yes, boss," he replied.

I hung up, trying to turn my attention back to the work piled on my desk, but no matter how hard I tried, my mind kept drifting back to the conversation with Maya. If she really was my sister, it was only a matter of tbefore my mother found out. Blackmail was a vicious cycle, one that I had no intention of getting caught in. It was like stepping into quicksand-the more you struggled, the deeper you sank, and I wasn't about to let that happen.

*************** I had to leave work early that evening. Lily and the boys were leaving tonight, and I was driving them to the airport myself. I pulled up to the house, handing the keys to my security to park the car while I made my way inside. The first thing I saw was Lily and my mother sitting together in the living room, laughing as they flipped through old baby pictures of me.

They both looked up at the stime, their smiles lingering as they saw me. Seeing my mother smile like that- so bright, so full of joy-maderealize just how much Lily's presence was helping her heal. She was slowly moving on from the pain of my father's death, and I was determined to protect that happiness with everything I had.

I wouldn't let a stranger steal that smile from her, not now, not ever. Even if Maya was my sister, she and her mother had managed to stay hidden all these years, and they could stay hidden for a while longer. My mother had been through enough. She didn't need to face more heartache.

"Are you okay?" Lily asked, her voice gentle as she pulledout of my thoughts.

I blinked, refocusing on them. "Yeah, I'm fine," I said, closing the distance between us and leaning down to press a kiss to her lips. "Are you done packing?" She nodded, her smile still in place. "Yeah, I finished hours ago.

I turned to my mother, bending down to kiss her cheek. "Hello, Mom." "How was work today?" she asked.

I shrugged. "Hectic as usual, but bearable," I replied.

My phone vibrated in my pocket, and I pulled it out, seeing an incoming call. "I need to take this," I said, walking away from them, feeling Lily's eyes onas I left the room. I stepped into our bedroom, closing the door behindbefore answering. "Hello, detective." Even though everyone believed my father had died of heart failure, I had

requested an autopsy before the funeral. I couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right, and m needed to know for sure. The results O had been ready for a while, but I hadn't had the tto check them. Besides, I didn't want my mother to know I had ordered an autopsy. She didn't need that worry hanging over her. "Hello, Mr. Williams," the detective greeted. "I just received a call from the team. You still haven't reviewed your father's autopsy results."

I sat down on the bed, cupping my head in my hands. "I've been busy with a lot of things," I said, my voice weary. So much had been happening alhatonde, and it felt like I was being pulled in a million different directions. "I promise I'll make tto check it tomorrow." "Or I could tell you over the phone," he offered. "I understand you're busy, Mr. Williams, and I want to make things easier for you." I hesitated for a moment, then nodded, even though he couldn't see me. "What does the report say?" He took a deep breath before answering, and the hesitation in his voice made my stomach twist. "Your father was poisoned, Mr. Williams." I froze, my mind struggling to process what he had just said. "What did you just say?" I asked, disbelief filling my voice. "My father was what?"

"Poisoned," he repeated, his tone grave. "He was poisonedapproximately three hours before his death. He died in his office because that was when the poison finally took effect." My jaw dropped, my heart pounding in my chest.

Who would want my father dead? Who would do something like this? "What do we do now, detective?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

"We need to find out where your father was three hours before he died," he replied. "That's our starting point."