AllFreeNovel
Share Us
A knock at the door surprised me because Sam didn’t bark like usual. I opened the door, and Spartan stood in the rain. “Get in here out of the rain,” I said, stepping out of the way. “What’s going on?”
He glanced at Bailey and then back at me. “We’ve found your Dad.”
“What?” Bailey exclaimed. I caught her as her legs gave way. “Are you sure he’s my father?”
“Bailey, sweetheart, take a deep breath. Tell us everything,” I added, motioning for Spartan to join us as we sat down.
“I spoke with him,” Spartan began. He owns a hardware store and has two teenage boys working with him. I don’t think he remembers who he is. Uncle Joe was with me and is still waiting for you before he talks to your Dad.”
“What? No, he can’t talk to my father. He has a family now. Let him live the life he has right now. So I have more siblings?” Bailey questioned.
“Four more; the youngest is six, and the oldest is seventeen. There are two girls and two boys,” Spartan confirmed.
“I don’t want to disrupt his life. He didn’t leave us because he stopped loving us, as Jackie and I believed. He didn’t remember us, which is why he never returned,” Bailey whispered.
“Honey, you should talk to him before Joe does,” I suggested, holding her hand.
“I don’t know what to do. I’m scared to talk to him. What if he doesn’t want to know me? Cole, please tell me what to do.”
“Sweetheart,” I glanced at Spartan, “Why the hell did Joe stay there?”
“He didn’t want his brother to disappear again. He said Jonah has already missed all of these years with the family and won’t miss anymore,” Spartan explained.
“What if he doesn’t want to remember?” Bailey said, looking at both of us. “I just don’t know what to do.”
“I have pictures on my phone,” Spartan said. “Would you like to see them?”
“Yes, please,” Bailey replied softly, we could barely hear her.
Spartan took his phone out and brought up the photos before handing it to Bailey. She closed her eyes for a moment, then she looked down, I sat closer to her so I could wrap my arms around her as the tears fell.
“I wish Uncle Joe hadn’t stayed there,” Bailey whispered.
“He said he’ll give you two days to decide before confronting Jonah.”
“My Dad could have found his family; all he would have had to do was a DNA test, but he decided not to find out who he was. Maybe going to prison, he thought he had a terrible life before he lost his memory. This is so hard. All the years I thought my father left us, and then to find out he lost his memory, I don’t know what to do.”
“My brothers are so handsome, look at them,” she said, showing me the photos. “My Dad looks like Uncle Joe and my other uncles,” She turned to me. “What should I do?”
“Bailey, what do you want to do?”
“If only I knew what he wanted. If he’s happy in his life, do we want to disrupt it? What about his children? I’m happier than I’ve ever been. I don’t think we should bother him. She looked at Spartan, “Where does he live?”
“About two hours from here.”
“What? He lives that close. Okay, we’ll leave in the morning. I’ll walk into his store and see if he recognizes anything about me. If he doesn’t, then I’ll go. I won’t force him to remember me; we have four more children to consider now. My brothers and sisters, I don’t want to shake their lives up. Should I call Izzy?”
“Do you want to do that?”
“I’ll tell her, and if she wants to come with us she’ll decide on her own. It’s up to her. I swear my heart is racing so fast,” I watched her rub her tummy like she was calming the baby down. She looked at me.
“He lives two hours away. All this time, my father’s been alive. My sister would still be alive if our father had been in our lives.”
“Sweetheart, I don’t want you going if this is going to upset you. Let your Uncle Joe handle it.”
“Of course, it upsets me. My father is alive, living a normal life with four children, a wife, and probably a dog and cat. I’m jealous and pissed because he didn’t remember Jackie and me. We were left to fend for ourselves.”
Someone knocked on the door, and Steel stood there. “Uncle Joe called me. He wants to know if you’re going to see your Dad. Your phone isn’t working. He’s called me five times. You’re lucky your phone is dead.”
