The name hit me like a lightning bolt. I had only heard whispers growing up — rumors of a sister Dad had lost touch with, stories Mom always shut down before details emerged. Rebecca was more ghost than relative.
But Dad pulled a folded envelope from his pocket and slid it across the table.
I read the handwriting slowly:
“My dear David, I know you don’t want contact, but I cannot stay silent anymore. I’ve watched from afar for years. Your father kept you from me, but I’ve always loved you. Your new life in Chicago sounds promising. Please don’t shut me out completely. — Rebecca Morales”
The words blurred. The implication hit me like a punch: David wasn’t just a stranger. He was family. Rebecca’s son.
Which meant Emily had just married her cousin.
An Impossible Choice
I pressed my hand against my mouth, sick with disbelief. “This has to be a mistake,” I whispered. “Maybe it’s a different Rebecca Morales. Maybe—”
Dad shook his head violently. “No. She wrote details only Rebecca would know — about our childhood, about our parents. It’s her. There’s no doubt.”
The walls of my world collapsed around me.
“Why didn’t you stop the wedding?” I demanded.
His voice cracked. “How could I? Without proof, I would have destroyed her happiness on the biggest day of her life. I had to be sure. But now, you know. And together… we have to tell her.”
