“I never wanted anything improper from you, Emily. I wanted to help the woman who raised my granddaughter.”
The following morning, I went straight to the hospital.
My mother was awake when I entered.
I placed the old photograph on her blanket.
She stared at it for a long time.
Then her face crumpled.
“Oh, Emily… You’ve found them.”
“You knew?”
She nodded, crying.
“I knew you had another family somewhere. But nobody could identify them. Your adoption was legal, and the records we received told us almost nothing.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Your father and I were afraid of losing you. We were wrong to keep it secret.”
I sat beside her.
“You’re still my mother. Nothing will ever change that.”
She squeezed my hand.
“Then promise me something.”
“Anything.”
“Don’t waste another day with the family you’ve found.”
A week later, a DNA test confirmed what our hearts already knew.
