Page 71 of He Doesn't Deserve You

“To the hospital. I have a meeting with the social worker.”

Emily followed Gabriel out of the room and asked, “Can you give me a few minutes? I’ll go with you.”

“I have other things I need to take care of. It would probably be best if you drove yourself,” he responded curtly.

Emily reached out and grabbed his arm, halting him in his tracks. “Wait. Can we talk about this?”

“I don’t have time. We’ll talk later,” Gabriel responded, as he pulled his arm free from her grasp and walked away.

Emily watched him leave, trying to suppress the sickening feeling gnawing at the pit of her stomach. In all their years of marriage, she had never seen Gabriel like this, and she was at a loss for how to reach him.

Emily waited for the front door to close, then ran to the window to watch Gabriel’s car pull away. Once he was gone, she hurried back to his office and tried to open the desk drawer. Frustrated, she searched for a spare key but came up empty-handed. Determined, she attempted to pick the lock with a letter opener, but her efforts were in vain. After twenty frustrating minutes of trying and failing, she finally gave up and left for the hospital.

38

After a night of heavy drinking and intense soul-searching, a distraught Gabriel reached a painful conclusion: everyone would be better off without him. Resolute in his decision, he left the house with unwavering determination, a man on a mission, believing there was no other way out.

His first stop was the bank, where he entered the vault, retrieved his safe deposit box, and placed it on the table. He watched and waited for the bank employee to leave the vault, then with a heavy heart, he pulled several envelopes from the inside pocket of his jacket—one for Emily and one for each of his children, including the newest addition, who was still unnamed. Carefully, he placed the envelopes into the box, feeling the weight of his actions settle upon him. He knew they deserved so much more—an honest explanation from him face-to-face—but the thought of confronting them was unbearable.

He whispered, “Please forgive me,” before closing the lid, locking the box, and carefully sliding it back into its designated slot. Then he exited the vault and nodded to the bank employee, signaling he was finished. She joined him and securely locked the vault behind them.

After leaving the bank, he drove to CVS and parked the car. In the parking lot, he quickly scribbled a prescription for Ambien on hisprescription pad. With the prescription in hand, he then went inside to have it filled. After leaving the pharmacy with the prescription, he realized it was still a bit early for his appointment with the social worker. However, there was another task he needed to take care of at the hospital.

Gabriel approached Roman’s hospital room but halted at the door upon seeing Emily seated on the bed, engaged in conversation with him. With her back to the door, neither noticed his presence. Realizing he couldn’t speak to Roman with Emily there, he quickly turned and walked away, resolving to try again later.

With time to kill, he found his feet leading him toward the nursery to visit the baby. As he cradled the baby in his arms, he silently prayed that his son would have a wonderful life with his grandparents and sincerely hoped that the child would not grow up to hate him. With a glance at his watch and a sigh, Gabriel realized it was time to go. He leaned in with a tender smile, pressing his lips gently against the baby’s forehead. Holding the infant close for a moment longer, he finally walked over to the cradle and carefully laid him down.

He reached the social services office precisely at 10:00 and knocked on the door. Kathy opened the door and greeted him with a warm smile, “Right on time,” she said, welcoming him in with an inviting gesture. “How are you doing today?”

“Fine,” Gabriel said, following Kathy to her office.

“Please, have a seat,” Kathy said, motioning to the chair opposite her as she settled into her own. She folded her hands together, resting her elbows on the desk. “I must tell you; Lily’s parents were relieved to hear that you wouldn’t be contesting them for custody. They are good people, Gabriel. The baby will be greatly loved. If they are granted custody, they wanted me to let you know that they would agree to give you visitation rights,” Kathy added.

Gabriel exhaled deeply. “I’m glad to hear they’re good people, but visitation won’t be necessary.”

Kathy studied him for a moment before saying, “You don’t have to decide right now. You might change your mind later on.”

Gabriel gave a brief nod and mustered a small smile. “Okay,” he said, avoiding further explanation.

Returning his smile, Kathy said, “Alright, the first thing we need to tackle is the paperwork.” She slid a consent form across the desk. “This is a consent form agreeing to a DNA collection to perform a paternity test on baby boy Rossi. While you fill that out, I’ll need to make a copy of your driver’s license.”

Gabriel reached into his pocket, pulled out his wallet, and handed Kathy his license. While Kathy left the room to make a copy of the license, Gabriel read over the form and signed it. When she returned, Kathy handed Gabriel his identification back and took her seat.

Putting the license back into his wallet, Gabriel said, “I’m all finished.”

“Okay, let’s take a look.” Kathy looked the paperwork over and then signed it as well.

Next, she opened the bottom drawer of her desk and took out a DNA test kit. She donned a pair of gloves and carefully tore open the packaging on a long buccal swab. Moving around the desk beside Gabriel, she said, “I’m going to collect a sample of your DNA from your cheek. Open wide, please.”

Gabriel opened his mouth, and Kathy ran the swab across his inner cheek, then placed the swab into a collection tub. “That’s it. I’ll obtain a sample of the baby’s DNA later today and then send it to the lab for processing.”

“How long will it take to get the results?” Gabriel inquired.

“Approximately three to five business days.”

“That long? I was hoping to get the results sooner,” Gabriel said, his gaze shifting away. “I’m going out of town for the next several weeks starting today. “Who will be granted custody until the paternity is established?”

“I see no reason why Lily’s parents can’t be given temporary custody in the interim.”

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