Once Upon A Knight's Woman

CHAPTER 26

Dedicated
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matto4lia
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Your
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Love
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This
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#ERICA'S POV#    

        
"What do you want to know?" I asked Clarissa.
       
"Everything." She responded. "From the beginning." She added.
   
"I conceived you in college. Brahms, your fat..." I take a deep breath. "The man you met today was my linguistic College lecturer. I was 18 while he was 24 at that time. I told him we were expecting and he denied been the father of the foetus then he denied ever having an intercourse with me and at some stage, he denied ever knowing me. So I had no choice but to stay away from him. He even issued a restraining order. I didn't tell you because I did not want you to feel rejected or unwanted. You are too small for that." I take a second to cool off.
     
"What about my twin. Is it true? Did you know?" She asked.
    
"I never knew about your twin. I became unconscious immediately after having you..."
     
She cut me off with a question.
"So is it true?"
      
I scooted closer to her. I placed her hands on my lap as I prepared what to say in my head. "I just called your grandma. She said after you, I had a stillborn. Well, it matches with Brahms's story. He claimed to have swapped your twin with a stillborn after birth."
       
She removed her hands from my lap harshly. She took a sharp intake of breath. "Ho... How wo... How would he do that? Why??" She asked with anguish evident in her voice. She turned to me. Her moist eyes asking me the unanswered question. My eyes fill up with tears too at her anguished face. Gosh, she is too young for this! He is a big jerk for trying to return back to her life and causing her so much pain! I seriously hate him for everything he has done!
    
"I seriously don't why. I don't know why he would do that. He denied paternity, so why? He can even be arrested for that!" I said as I returned her hands to my lap.
      
We stayed in that silence, each one lost in their own thought.
     
"I want to meet her." Clarissa blurted out.
     
"What?"
     
"I want to meet her." She repeated.
     
"Who?" I asked even though I knew the answer. I am hoping I'm wrong.
       
"My twin." Her answer proved me right.
      
"What if he is lying? I might have really given birth to a stillborn."
      
"That is the reason there is something called Paternity and Maternity test. What do you think?"
   
"What if..."
    
She cut me off. "Give him a call."
    
Gosh! I seriously hate him to the moon and back! It's not just fair! What is his deal exactly?!
     
"I don't have his number." I manage to say.
    
She stands up. "Then don't bother. He will be back anyways." She says as she strolls away.
      
"Wh...Whaa...What do you mean by that?" I asked but the slam of her room door gave me the reply; 'End of conversation'.
      
I needed someone with me but Alvin just left so I couldn't call him again. I thought of May but she would be busy with her kids as it's a weekend. I picked up my phone to call  dad but I could not bring myself to tell her what just happened.
    
"Hello sweetheart." He replied sweetly.
      
"Hello? Hello? Erica?"
     
"Can you hear me, Erica?"
    
I brought my finger up to terminate the call but his caring voice stopped me.
      
"Talk to me dear. What is wrong?"
     
"Dad! They all lied to me!" I  cried out affected by his tender voice.
     
"You are at home, right dear?" He asked.
    
Forgetting that he can't see me through the voice call, I nodded.
     
"OK then, wait for me."
    
"Don't bring mum along." I said in an undertone. I know she did what she did because she had my best interest at heart but that does not stop me from being annoyed with her.
     
"I won't darling. Rest up till I'm there."
   
I nodded again before terminating the phone call. It was after the phone call, I recalled that I did not give dad an answer when he asked if I was home. I just nodded but he heard my unspoken yes. There was this thick connection between I and my father. Don't get me wrong, I love my mum. I love her to the moon and back though I'm still annoyed with her. But unlike the stereotype of most people that daughters are not open with their father, I am very open with my father.
       
                             ¶ ¶¶ ¶

       
It's been a week now. A week since Brahms tried to scatter my balance in life. And a week since I have heard nothing from him. Clarissa said he would be back but we have heard nothing and she did not bring up the topic since then. She is acting normally like a bomb as not dropped into our home and I did not bring the topic up too.
      
Alvin has been busy trying to dig up information on what had happened inside the operation room. He has been looking for any doctor who had worked at Lukewarm hospital at the time of Clarissa's birth and who is related to Brooks.   
      
According to the hospital record, a Dr. Philip was the doctor who carried out the delivery with other scrub nurses and midwives whose names where also on the record. But unfortunately all those involved in the delivery could not be located. It was like they disappeared from the surfaces of the Earth which is not possible. All this points to the fact that a backdoor deal happened here.
     
Alvin is so focused on his laptop, I doubt if he notices that my head is on his lap. I change the position of my head on his lap not because I'm uncomfortable but because I wanted him to at least look at me and it worked.
         
"Are you uncomfortable baby?" He asked taking a quick glance at me before his eyes were back on his laptop again. The quick glance made me realise how sunken his eyes were in just one week because of me.
      
"Honey eyes, please can you read this book to me." I managed to say with all the sweetness in my bones. He turns his eyes to me drastically. I guess he was surprised by my over sweet voice. I am surprised too by how sweet that sounded to my own ears too.
         
He quickly dropped his laptop on the centre table and collected the book from me. The book is titled; ‘Don't Stay In The Shadow For Too Long For I've Been Standing In It For Too Long’ by my only favorite author. I guess you know who that is by now, right? Well, it's purple Me.
     
His eyes shone once he saw the back cover. I could guess what he wanted to say.
    
"I read this to you some days ago."
     
"I know. I just love the storyline so much. Please would you read it to me again."
      
"Fine" He said and he began reading. I had already zoned out even before he began. He had been working so hard for me and I wanted to give him a break. I did not want to drag him into this but he refused to be left out of the circle. I guess he has been my most recent blessing. He has always been by my side throughout this week. He and Clarissa actually. And that is just what I want but I'm not sure if that can still happen as another constant and variable has been added into the equation. He could not just be I, Clarissa and him again.
     
Why do things like this usually happen to me? Can you imagine, I had a daughter I never met or knew about. Alvin feels we can arrest him once we find evidence that he kidnapped Clarissa's twin which is after conducting a DNA test but that is just going to be too hectic. I just want to see her and get to know her. I just want to know what she thinks of me hopefully Brooks has not fed her lies. I believe if I see her and speak to her I should be able to know if she is my daughter or not, right?
      
      
   
   
       
It's sort of a filler chapter.          Something to keep you all scrolling. Click on the star like button below to vote if you enjoyed reading this chapter nevertheless. The comment box is open to anybody and for everybody. Feel free to tell me what you think about the chapter or feel free to give advice or feel free to ask me any questions. In case you are an introvert, feel free to message me privately.
    
See you all later!!! Bye for now and enjoy the rest of your day👋😘