Chapter 7: The Missing Test Result
“There's something else you need to know about that second test.””
Derrick's voice came through David's phone, low and deliberate.
David stood beside the dining table, gripping the courthouse document so tightly that its edges bent beneath his fingers. Marcus watched his father's face, waiting for an answer that would finally make sense of the last twenty years.
Denise remained near the hallway.
For once, she wasn't trying to control the conversation.
She looked like someone waiting for a verdict.
“What else?”” David demanded.
Derrick exhaled.
“The first test wasn't conclusive. Renee wanted a second one because she didn't trust the circumstances surrounding the original sample.””
Marcus frowned.
“What sample?””
“Blood samples,” Derrick answered.
“Your mother had questions about your paternity, Marcus. She wanted certainty before she made any permanent decisions.””
David shook his head.
“Why didn't she tell me?””
“She was afraid.””
“Of me?””
“No. Of what would happen if the result changed everything.””
Marcus looked down at the court document.
A date. A case number. Two names. A reference to additional evidence.
His entire identity had suddenly become a question mark printed on official paper.
“So the second test was never completed?”” he asked.
Derrick paused.
“It was completed.””
David's head snapped toward the phone.
“What?””
“The laboratory finished the second test. Renee was waiting for the result when she died.””
Marcus stepped closer to his father.
“Then where is it?””
“I don't know,” Derrick replied.
“But Denise told me years ago that the envelope had been delivered.””
Everyone turned toward Denise.
She gripped the edge of the hallway wall.
“I never said that.””
Derrick's voice sharpened.
“You told me you received a sealed envelope from the laboratory after Renee died.””
“I said I received paperwork!””
“Then where is it?””
Denise looked at the floor.
David placed the court document on the table.
“Denise, I need you to answer one question. Did you ever see the second test result?””
She shook her head.
“Not the result itself.””
Marcus felt his chest tighten.
“What does that mean?””
“I received an envelope addressed to Renee. It came after the funeral. I didn't open it.””
“But you kept it?””
Denise nodded.
“Where?””
“In the storage box with her things.””
Marcus looked at the open cardboard box.
They had already searched it. They had found the letter and the court paperwork, but no laboratory envelope.
David pulled out the remaining papers, checking every folded sheet and photograph.
Nothing.
“Where else could it be?”” he asked.
Denise hesitated.
“I moved some things when we renovated the hallway cabinet.””
Marcus stared at her.
“Where did you move them?””
“The garage.””
David shook his head.
“You told me everything from Renee's box was still here.””
“I didn't want you going through it.””
“Why?””
Denise looked toward Marcus.
“Because I knew one day he would ask questions.””
Marcus felt anger surge through him.
“You knew this day would come, and you still took my money?””
She wiped her face.
“The money was separate.””
“Separate?”” Marcus repeated.
“You sent Derrick money every month. You hid my mother's documents. You lied to Dad. How many separate secrets am I supposed to believe you were keeping?””
Denise lowered her head.
David picked up his keys.
“I'm getting the box.””
“I'll come with you,” Marcus said.
“No,” David replied gently.
“Stay here with Denise. I want to find the paperwork before anything else happens.””
Marcus shook his head.
“Dad, I'm not a child.””
“I know.”” David held his gaze.
“And that's why I'm asking you to help me in a different way. Keep the statement and the court document together. Take photographs of every page. Don't let anyone remove anything from this table.””
Marcus nodded reluctantly.
David left through the hallway.
The front door closed.
For several seconds, Marcus and Denise stood on opposite sides of the dining table, surrounded by evidence of a life neither had understood.
Denise slowly sat down.
“Marcus, there's something I need to tell you.””
He didn't sit.
“Then tell me.””
She looked at the rent notice.
“I didn't start taking your money because I wanted to hurt you. Derrick contacted me last year. He said he was trying to settle some old questions about Renee. At first, I refused to help him.””
“What changed?””
“He showed me a copy of the original court filing. He said if I didn't help him locate the missing test result, he'd contact David and tell him everything.””
Marcus stared at her.
“So you paid him to stay quiet.””
“I paid him because I was terrified.””
“Terrified of what the result would say?””
She nodded.
“Why?””
Denise looked up, tears running freely now.
“Because if Derrick was your biological father, then everything David and I had built around the story of your childhood would have to be explained.””
Marcus pulled out the chair opposite her.
For the first time, he wanted to hear her answer.
“Did you know Derrick before Dad married you?””
“Yes.””
“Did you know him before Mom died?””
“Yes.””
“Were you involved in whatever happened between them?””
Denise pressed her palms against the table.
“I knew about the paternity questions. Renee told me she was frightened because the first test had raised doubts about what she'd believed. She asked me to help her protect you until she had the second result.””
“Protect me from what?””
“I thought she was afraid that Derrick would try to take you away from David.””
Marcus looked at the photograph of Renee.
“Did he?””
“No. Not then.””
“Then why did you hide everything?””
Denise's voice dropped.
“Because after Renee died, David was devastated. He was trying to raise you alone. When we married, I promised him I would never let anything from the past hurt you.””
Marcus leaned back.
“And you decided lying was the best way to keep that promise?””
She had no answer.
The front door opened.
David returned carrying a plastic storage bin. He placed it on the dining table and lifted the lid.
Inside were folders, old envelopes, and a small brown packet secured with a rubber band.
Marcus helped him empty the contents.
They found Renee's hospital bracelet, an insurance form, and several letters addressed to Denise.
Then David pulled out a cream-colored envelope.
A laboratory logo was printed in the upper corner.
His fingers stopped moving.
“This is it,” he whispered.
Marcus stood beside him.
The envelope was sealed, its edges yellowed with age. Renee's name appeared on the front, followed by the original case number.
David carefully opened it.
Inside was a single page.
He unfolded it.
His eyes moved across the first paragraph.
Then he stopped.
Marcus felt his heart pound.
“What does it say?””
David didn't answer.
He read the page again, his lips moving silently.
Denise rose from her chair.
“David?””
He turned the paper over.
The reverse side contained a second page, marked as an amended report.
David stared at it as if he could no longer recognize the language.
Marcus reached for the document.
“Dad, let me see.””
David handed it to him.
Marcus scanned the first lines, then moved down to the section labeled Conclusion.
The report stated that the first result had been inconclusive.
The second result, however, had reached a definitive conclusion.
He read the name listed under Biological Father.
His hands began to shake.
“Dad,” he whispered.
David looked at him.
Marcus couldn't bring himself to say the name aloud.
Because the report didn't simply challenge what he knew about his childhood.
May you like
It challenged the one thing he had never questioned.
Who had actually been his father all along?
