Chapter Forty: Not Too Late

Beth

I wasn’t crying because I was sad. I wasn’t even crying out of self-pity for all the crap I’d been through in the last seven years.

No, I was crying in relief.

The secret of Lucy’s paternity had been gnawing at me for seven years, like an ulcer that would never heal. I hated the secrecy, I hated the lies, but at the time I was so young and scared that I didn’t think I had any other option. And back then I had trusted Gabriel. I thought that, apart from being Raphael’s brother, Gabe was also my best friend. When he promised to take care of me, and take care of the baby, I believed him.

No doubt that there would be consequences, now that the truth was out, but I felt like I could face them, as long as I could be truthful.

“Lucy,” I quickly wiped away my tears and squatted down to m……