AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“So, there are two of you,” Emily says as we meet up with one another.
I take a look at the girl she has, and this girl also has light blue eyes. Only this girl’s birthmark is closer to her ear, while the one I have with me has her birthmark located closer to her neck. I know Emily said the birthmark was right under her ear, but over the years, as the girl grew, it could’ve moved down more.
“My name is Emily, and I’m not sure if Lom told you why we’re here… but one of you two is my daughter, and I’m trying to get you back. That place where you were… it wasn’t where you were supposed to go. All of you—your friends over there—were supposed to be adopted into families who would love you and cherish you, but a mean woman took you to that place… and I’m so sorry for everything you’ve ever had to go through. Please know your parents love you more than anything and where you went is never where you were meant to go. They had the best intentions.” I can’t hide the fact I’m shocked Emily’s being so honest with these two girls, but at the same time, we know their lives haven’t been what they were intended to be.
“So… we were cared about? They… they told us we were thrown away like garbage,” the girl with Emily says, and her lip begins to quiver.
“Yes, you were loved beyond your wildest dreams,” Emily tells her, but the girl with me speaks up.
“If we were loved, then why were we given away?”
Emily looks at the little girl with me and swallows hard before speaking. “Because most of your mothers were fifteen, sixteen, or seventeen years old. They didn’t have the resources to provide for you and give you a good life, so they were trying to find a family who could give you everything you’d need plus more.”
“Is that supposed to make us feel better… our life has sucked,” she tells her, and my own heart sinks into my stomach.
“I know it has, and there’s nothing we can ever do to make up for any of it… but all we can try to do is make it better from this point forward. What are your names?” Emily is doing her best to try and make sure both of these girls are confident in what we’re doing here, but after everything they’ve been through, I don’t know if it’ll be possible.
“We’re both Sierra, I’m one, and she’s two. That’s what they would call us… one and two,” the girl with me answers. She has dirty blonde hair, while the other girl has dark locks, just like Emily.
Ludvik comes over with three kits in his hands. “I’ve got some DNA tests here. We can get them processed today if we get them to the lab before noon.”
I help Ludvik open them up and read the directions. Emily does the kit on herself first and seals everything while I help the Sierra I have with her kit. Emily helps the other Sierra swab her cheeks when she’s done with hers, and Ludvik has all the kits in his hands.
“Go ahead and take them to the lab,” I tell him, knowing we all want these results to come back as soon as possible.
Ludvik heads toward the SUV and tears out of the parking lot like he’s being chased by the police. He knows how important this is, so I’m not shocked he’s racing to the lab.
“I’m really hungry,” the Sierra with me says, and I look at Emily for a second before looking back at the girl.
“Okay, then I’ll get Ludvik to come back with some pizza and soda for you all. Does that sound nice?”
“Pizza?” She furrows her brow, and the brutal reality slaps me in the face. These girls have never experienced the simple pleasantries of life. God, they’ve been through hell, but they’re never going to have to endure it ever again.
“Yeah, it’s so delicious and yummy. I think maybe some brownies or cookies are something we should add to the list, too,” Emily says and then looks at me.
I nod without hesitation because these girls have been through enough already. One thing’s for certain, their lives are never going to be the same. They’re going to be so much better.
Chapter Twenty-One
Emily
When we got back to the hotel suite the other night, I felt horrible, worse than I ever thought I was going to feel. I knew these girls had probably been through hell, but they had never had a cookie or even a brownie before. They’ve never had pizza or tasted Pepsi. It broke my heart, shredding it into a million little pieces.
We spent a few hours with the girls and ate with them, played with them, and even went out to get them some new clothes. They were in old, worn-out clothing they’d probably been in for weeks, and I doubt the clothes were even washed before they were given to them.
Lom and I discussed so much the day we met the girls, especially the guilt and shame I was feeling. For the most part, I kept my feelings buried deep down, but as time went on, I could feel myself cracking under the pressure of it all. I was proud that I didn’t crack until after we got back here. The last thing I wanted was to break down crying in front of all of those poor girls.
I’ve been visiting them every single day since they arrived in Atlanta because it’s not like I have a job to go to anymore. Spending time with them has been amazing, and I’ve learned so much about each of their personalities. I’ve gotten to know all their names.
Naomi, Sierra one, Madalyn, Sierra two, Nicolette, Emilia, Olive, Dara, Penelope, Lilly, Alannah, Rachelle, Kayleigh, and Sarah. I’m not sure if they all kept the same names they were given at birth, but I’m really hoping they did. It’s still a needle in a haystack when it comes to finding their birth parents, but it’s at least it’s some kind of starting-off point. Otherwise, we’dbe going into everything blindly, and it would only make all this that much harder.
My phone rings on the coffee table, and I snatch it up. We were told we’d get the results within twenty-four hours, but the lab’s been backed up with other paternity cases, so we were told it might take forty-eight to seventy-two hours longer. The phone number calling me is from an Atlanta area code, so I answer without hesitation. “Hello.”
“Hello, is this Emily Matherson?”
“Yes, it is.”
“Hi, this is Yvonne from Star Labs. I was calling to give you your results over the phone since it was specified to call you as soon as possible. Do you have the case numbers for the tests we conducted for you?”
