Chapter 5: The Daughter Behind the Secret
For a few seconds, I forgot how to breathe.
The ballroom disappeared.
The flowers disappeared.
The guests disappeared.
All I could see was the photograph in my hand.
A younger Simone.
A younger Malcolm.
And a little girl standing between them.
A child.
Another child.
Another person Simone had kept hidden.
I looked at her.
The woman I was supposed to marry.
The woman who was supposed to become part of my daughter’s life.
“How many secrets are there?””
My voice barely sounded like mine.
Simone shook her head quickly.
“Darius, it’s not what you think.””
I stared at her.
“That sentence has never made anyone feel better.””
She covered her face.
“I didn’t know how to tell you.””
“You had years.””
“I was afraid.””
I stepped back.
“Of what?””
She looked at Aaliyah.
That hurt.
Because my daughter saw it too.
Simone had looked at her like she was the reason for everything.
Like Aaliyah was somehow connected to the secret.
I moved in front of my daughter.
“Don’t look at her.””
Simone froze.
“I wasn’t blaming her.””
“Then don’t make her feel like she’s part of this.””
Her eyes filled with tears.
“I would never hurt her.””
But the words sounded empty now.
Because hurting someone wasn’t always intentional.
Sometimes it happened when you chose silence.
Janelle slowly approached.
“The girl’s name is Maya.””
I looked at her.
“Who is Maya?””
Nobody answered immediately.
Then Malcolm spoke.
“She’s Simone’s daughter.””
The room went silent.
Aaliyah looked up at me.
Confused.
I didn’t know what to say.
Because I didn’t know what was real anymore.
I looked at Simone.
“You have a daughter?””
She nodded.
“She’s twenty.””
Twenty.
Another entire life.
Another person.
Another story.
I felt something break inside me.
Not anger this time.
Something worse.
Disappointment.
“You told me you couldn’t have children.””
Simone closed her eyes.
“I said I couldn’t have more children.””
I stared at her.
“You let me believe…”
“I know.””
Her voice cracked.
“I know what it sounded like.””
I shook my head.
“You let me believe we were starting something new together.””
“We were.””
“No.””
I looked at the photograph.
“We were starting something you edited.””
Malcolm looked away.
Maybe because he understood.
Maybe because he had felt the same thing.
I turned toward him.
“You knew all of this?””
He nodded.
“Yes.””
“And you waited until my wedding day?””
His jaw tightened.
“I tried to contact you before.””
Simone looked at him.
“Don’t.””
Malcolm looked angry.
“I called. I sent messages.””
She looked away.
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.””
“I know you ignored every attempt.””
The accusation hung in the air.
I looked at Simone.
“Is that true?””
She didn’t answer.
That was enough.
I closed my eyes.
Aaliyah quietly spoke.
“Dad…”
I looked down.
She was still holding her bouquet.
The same bouquet she had carried down the aisle before everything collapsed.
“I don’t like weddings anymore.””
Those words hurt more than anything else.
I knelt.
“Hey.””
She looked at me.
“This isn’t your fault.””
She nodded.
“But everyone keeps lying.””
I had no answer.
Because she was right.
Everyone had been lying.
Malcolm.
Simone.
Janelle.
Maybe even me.
Because I had believed love meant knowing someone completely.
I stood up.
“Where is Maya?””
Simone looked surprised.
“What?””
“The girl in the picture.””
She swallowed.
“She’s not here.””
“Why?””
Her expression changed.
Fear returned.
Real fear.
“She doesn’t know.””
I frowned.
“She doesn’t know about you?””
Simone looked at Malcolm.
Then at Janelle.
“No.””
The room became colder.
I stared at her.
“You hid your own daughter from me.””
“I was protecting her.””
“From what?””
No answer.
Again.
Always no answer.
I walked closer.
“Simone, I need you to understand something.””
She looked at me.
“I don’t care if the truth is ugly.””
My voice shook.
“I care that you decided I wasn’t allowed to know it.””
She started crying.
“I loved you.””
I looked at her.
“Maybe you did.””
That was the hardest thing to say.
Because part of me still believed it.
But love without honesty was something I didn’t recognize anymore.
Malcolm suddenly looked at his phone.
His expression changed.
“What?””
Janelle noticed.
“What happened?””
He didn’t answer.
He stared at the screen.
Then he looked at Simone.
“She knows.””
Simone went completely still.
“Who?””
Malcolm turned the phone around.
I couldn’t see the message.
But I saw Simone’s face.
The fear.
The panic.
The regret.
“What did she say?”” Simone whispered.
Malcolm looked at her.
Then at me.
May you like
And said:
“Maya found out who her mother really is.””
