Page 32 of Atlas Uncharted

“What in the fuck did you do, Atlas?” she croaked, looking as if she saw a ghost.

Chapter 21

Kairi

"What in the fuck did you do?" I heard Ashlen before I saw her.

I speed-walked around the corner, as she was accusing Atlas of being there with another woman and his child. Atlas looked confused. I wasn’t going to let her create a bigger mess than she already had.

“Stop, Ashlen. This isn’t what you think. Dion’s my son, not Atlas’s,” I said firmly, stepping between her and Atlas and gently pulling Dion back into my arms. “There’s nothing here for you to question.”

Ashlen’s eyes flickered with confusion, and Atlas looked visibly relieved. I could see the questions swirling in both their eyes, but this wasn’t the time for a deep conversation. "I have to drive my father back home. Mrs. Shirley is asking for you, Atlas," I told him, offering a temporary reprieve. I just needed to get out of there and think.

“I’ll call you, Ashlen,” I said before walking away, heading back to my father in a hurry. “Bye,” Dion yelled.

I rushed out of the hospital. My father was waiting for me in the parking.

With Dion settled in his car seat, I drove my father back home, my thoughts all over the place. He was silent for the first part ofthe drive, staring out the window, lost in his own world. When he finally spoke, his voice was low, heavy with something deeper than just exhaustion.

“I don’t think I could survive losing her, Kairi. Not after your mother,” he murmured, his voice barely audible.

I tightened my grip on the steering wheel, my heart aching for him. “You won’t lose her, Dad. The operation went well, the stent will do its job, and she’s otherwise healthy. She’ll be around for years to come.” I glanced over at him. “I’m going to help out with her medical bills, and I’ll be moving back earlier than I planned. You shouldn’t have to do this alone.”

He shook his head, his eyes misty with unshed tears. “You don’t have to do any of this, Kairi. You’ve already done more than enough. You have your own life—don’t put it on hold for us.”

“I want to, Dad," I replied softly. "You were so unhappy before Mrs. Shirley came into your life. She gave you a reason to smile again. I owe her, and I owe you.” I was moving a lot sooner than I wanted or expected. Now all I could do was make the best out of a bad choice and circumstance. In the morning, I would call Ashlen to explain that I couldn’t be there for her the way I had promised and would offer to pay for someone to help.

The thought of living so close to them again, after they knew about Dion didn’t sit right with me, but I pushed the feeling aside.

When we reached the house, my father helped me with Dion, who was knocked out in his seat. When my father came back downstairs twenty minutes later, showered, I was ready to take him back to the hospital, but he stopped me. “I’ll be fine, Kairi. Get some rest. Don’t wake Dion up. I’ll take an Uber.”

“Are you sure?” I asked.

He nodded, kissed me on the forehead, and said, “I’m sure. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

I watched him walk out of my childhood home, my heart hurting for him. I sat down where Dion had been placed, the room was dark and quiet. For the first time in what felt like days, I allowed myself to just breathe. I was exhausted, and I could feel the pressure building behind my eyes. Before I knew it, I was waking up, and it was time to get the day started.

I spent hours making calls, setting up my father’s house for Mrs. Shirley’s return, arranging for nurses, and getting everything in order. By the time I looked at the clock, it was already 8 p.m., and I hadn’t called Ashlen, though she’d been calling me all day. I didn’t want to deal with her at all—she’d have to wait. I was about to settle down and give Dion a bath when there was a knock at the door.

I didn’t need to see who it was to know, because Ashlen shouted my name. I had hoped I could avoid this, at least for a little longer. But as soon as I opened the door, Ashlen pushed her way in before I could say a word.

“When did you fuck my husband?” Her voice was sharp, venomous.

I blinked, taken aback by her accusation, looking at her like she had lost her mind. “What are you talking about, Ashlen?”

“Don’t lie, Kairi,” she spat, her voice trembling with rage. “I know what my husband’s child looks like. Dion is the spitting image of Atlas when he was a baby—the spitting image of my son who died—but in brown. Atlas is too grief-stricken to see it now, but when he does, he’s going to burn everything down because you’ve been hiding him from him.”

I froze, my heart pounding in my chest as her words hit me like a ton of bricks. Ashlen wasn’t wrong. Dion was Atlas’s child.

I hadn’t been malicious in not telling Atlas. That’s why even after we said goodbye for good, I kept answering his phone calls, even if all he did was breathe into the phone. I wanted to keep in touch. I was going to tell him. But it was never the right time.

I couldn’t bring a child into their lives when they were already falling apart. But now, the truth was out in the open, and there was no escaping it. I just stood there, speechless, feeling the ground shift beneath me.

“You’ve always been a sentimental bitch. You named him Dion?” Ashlen's voice dripped with venom. “As in Dionysus? How poetic,” she spat.

I opened my mouth to explain, but nothing came out.

“No. Don’t try to bullshit me. You better do what I say, Kairi,” she threatened, her voice low, menacing. “Or I’ll help Atlas take him from you.”

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