Chapter 7: The Man She Named as Father
I didn't go back into Vanessa's room immediately.
I stood in the hospital corridor, staring at the name on the medical chart.
Adrian Cole.
The man my wife had been meeting behind my back.
The man who had received money from our savings.
The man whose name she had written beside the words Father of baby.
I had spent eight months imagining what it would feel like to hold my child for the first time.
I'd assembled the crib.
I'd painted the nursery.
I'd taken photographs of every ultrasound.
I'd even started recording bedtime stories so my son or daughter could hear my voice.
Now I didn't know whether I had any right to call that child mine.
My phone vibrated.
Daniel had sent Adrian's office address.
I called him.
“I'm going there.””
“Marcus, wait,” Daniel said.
“Ryan just told me something else.””
“What?””
“Adrian has been telling people he's going to be a father.””
My grip tightened.
“Did he say that to Ryan?””
“Yes. And apparently, he has been buying baby furniture.””
I looked toward Vanessa's room.
“Does Chloe know?””
“She does. She's been trying to reach you.””
I ended the call and returned to the room.
Vanessa was sitting upright, her wedding ring beside her.
When I entered, she looked at me with red eyes.
“Close the door.””
I did.
“Why is Adrian listed as the father?””
She looked down.
“Because I didn't know what else to put.””
“You could have put my name.””
“I didn't want to lie.””
I laughed bitterly.
“Now you care about lying?””
She flinched.
“Marcus, please. I know this is terrible.””
“Is Adrian the father?””
“I don't know.””
“Did you sleep with him while we were trying to conceive?””
She nodded.
I pulled a chair away from the bed.
“When?””
“Three times.””
The number landed like a physical blow.
“Three times?””
She covered her face.
“I was confused.””
“You were confused three times?””
“I was unhappy!””
I stared at her.
“You were unhappy, so you had an affair?””
“You never listened to me. Your mother was always there. Every decision we made had to go through her.””
“My mother had nothing to do with Adrian.””
Vanessa wiped her cheeks.
“He made me feel important. He listened to me. He understood that I needed something of my own.””
“Did he understand that you were married?””
She didn't answer.
I stood up.
“I'm going to speak to him.””
Her expression changed immediately.
“No.””
“Why?””
“Because he'll lie.””
“Then I'll hear his lies myself.””
She grabbed my wrist.
“Marcus, you don't understand what he's capable of.””
I looked down at her hand.
“Neither do I understand what you're capable of anymore.””
I gently pulled away.
She began crying again.
“Please don't abandon me while I'm pregnant.””
I stopped at the door.
“I'm not abandoning my child, Vanessa. But I can't keep pretending I know who you are.””
I left.
Adrian's office was on the fourth floor of a glass building downtown.
A receptionist asked whether I had an appointment.
I told her my name.
She checked her computer.
Then she looked up with an uncomfortable expression.
“Mr. Cole is expecting you.””
That sentence surprised me.
I followed her down a hallway.
Adrian stood near a window, wearing a dark blue suit. He was taller than me, with neatly styled brown hair and an expensive watch.
He smiled when I entered.
“Marcus. Finally.””
I didn't offer my hand.
“Are you sleeping with my wife?””
His smile disappeared.
He closed the office door.
“Let's sit down.””
“I didn't come here to sit down.””
Adrian sighed.
“Vanessa told me you were emotional.””
I stepped forward.
“Answer the question.””
He looked at me for several seconds.
Then he nodded.
“Yes.””
The honesty was almost worse than a denial.
“How long?””
“About a year.””
I stared at him.
“A year?””
“Marcus, things between you and Vanessa were complicated.””
“You knew she was married.””
“Of course.””
“You knew she was pregnant.””
He looked toward the window.
“Yes.””
I clenched my fists.
“Is the baby yours?””
Adrian didn't answer immediately.
Then he opened a drawer and removed a folder.
“I think you should look at this.””
Inside were printed emails, payment records, and a document with Vanessa's signature.
The first page was a financial agreement.
The second was a proposed property transfer.
My name appeared beside a signature that looked like mine.
I recognized the handwriting.
It was a forgery.
“You've been planning to take my house?””
Adrian leaned against his desk.
“Vanessa said the property was going to become part of her divorce settlement.””
“It's my father's house.””
“I didn't know that.””
“You didn't think to ask?””
He shrugged.
“I'm not your marriage counselor.””
I threw the document onto his desk.
“Did she tell you the baby was yours?””
Adrian looked at me.
“She told me there was a good chance.””
“And you believed her?””
“She showed me the dates.””
I felt my stomach twist.
“Then why did she marry me?””
He hesitated.
“Because she wanted stability.””
I stared at him.
“Explain.””
Adrian sighed.
“Vanessa told me you were financially secure, dependable, and desperate to have a family. She said you would make a good husband and provide a comfortable life.””
“And you?””
“She said I wasn't ready to settle down.””
I felt sick.
“So she married me while keeping you around?””
He looked uncomfortable.
“That's how it started.””
“And the pregnancy?””
He opened the folder again.
“She wanted a child. We both knew the timing could be complicated.””
I gripped the edge of his desk.
“Are you telling me you planned this?””
Adrian raised both hands.
“I didn't plan the marriage.””
“But you planned to take my money.””
He said nothing.
I pulled out my phone.
“I'm recording this conversation.””
His face changed.
“You can't do that.””
“Then tell me why my wife transferred money into your account.””
He stared at me.
Finally, he said, “Because she promised to leave you.””
“And the forty-eight thousand?””
“Part of our arrangement.””
I stepped back.
I had come looking for a confession.
I had found an entire business plan built around my life.
Before I could ask another question, Adrian's phone rang.
He glanced at the screen.
Vanessa.
He rejected the call.
Then he looked at me.
“There's something else you should know.””
“What?””
“Vanessa isn't the only person who has been keeping secrets.””
He opened another folder.
Inside was a photograph of my mother standing outside a bank.
Beside her was a man wearing a gray coat.
I recognized him immediately.
It was the same man who had appeared in the background of Vanessa's hotel photograph.
Adrian pushed the picture toward me.
“Ask your mother why she met him.””
My blood ran cold.
May you like
Because the man standing beside my mother was my father's former business partner.
And according to everything I'd been told, he had died three years ago.
