Page 151 of Invisible String
“Amor?” My voice breaks. “How long have you been standing there?”
Rowan’s face is downright scared.
“Is it true?” She looks at her father. “Tell me. Am I adopted?” Her voice sounds like it’s dragged through shards of glass. “I’m adopted?” she repeats in a low, painful voice.
“Yes, sweetheart, but it doesn’t matter. You’re my daughter, always and forever. It changes nothing. Come, sit. We can talk,” Rowan says, pulling a chair slowly as if he’s going to spook her.
Rainey’s hands shake, and I take steps toward her, but she shakes her head at me. The knives in my chest dig in. “How do you know all this, Max? Why do you know and not me?”
“Tesoro,let’s go home and talk. We have a lot to discuss.”
She shakes her head at me. Tears flow down her cheek. “No.” Then Rainey peers at her father. “At what age?” Her heart is shattering.
“Eleven,” he whispers.
Her mouth opens and closes. She takes a step back. I take a step forward. “Please, baby, let’s go home. We can talk there.”
“Don’t go to my house, Max. Not right now. I…this is too much.” She rushes out the door, and in that instant, it feels like a heavy boot has stomped on my heart.
“Rainey!” I shout.
Rowan slumps on a chair. “She needs time. When she’s ready, she’ll come to you. This is why I didn’t want to tell her.”
Anger boils my blood. “She needed to know, but not like this with her eavesdropping.”
I jog out the door, trying to catch up to Rainey. She’s gone. Justin runs after me.
“She knows, doesn’t she? I saw her run out of Dad’s office.”
“Yeah, she only knows about the adoption, but nothing else.
“Fuck.” Justin shakes his head. “I told Mom and Dad to tell her when she turned eighteen. I think things could have been different for you both.”
It would have all been different if they had told her the truth. I’ve carried this weight on my chest for years. She’s just not my Rainey, but my Sol. I’d hoped she’d regain her memory. I tried all these times when the force of fate brought us back together to get her to remember me. Nothing triggered it. Anytime we got too close, she was ripped away from me. Her parents feared I would trigger her.
I was the trigger.
CHAPTER FORTY TWO
RAINEY
My feet carry me up to the edge of the stone wall. I’m unsure how I got here, but I did. I drove around for a couple of hours and managed to lose Gary and Johnny. Stopped several times for gas. Now I’m sitting here staring into the sparkling water of the dam. The clouds are rolling in. Rain should drizzle anytime soon. The forecast said it was going to pour, but I don’t trust meteorologists. They will say it’s going to storm, and we only get droplets of water, then they say there's a chance of light rain, and you get a thunderstorm.
My life is a thunderstorm. I’m still trying to grasp the conversation I heard on the other side of the door. What does Max have to do with all this? And why did my dad have him keep quiet? And I’m adopted.
My head is spinning.
Footsteps crunch rhythmically on the gravel path, drawing my attention. I peer over to see a couple approaching the brick wall that overlooks the shimmering water under the starlit sky. Their fingers are intertwined, and they exchange tender smiles that speak volumes. As they pause, the girl fishes for her phone, capturing playful selfies with wide grins. Suddenly, the man releases her hand, takes a deep breath, and gracefully lowershimself onto one knee. My heart leaps with anticipation for the girl, who stands frozen in wide-eyed wonder. His voice is steady, and the words flow like poetry, weaving a heartfelt and beautiful speech. My hand goes to my chest, and more tears flood my vision.
I’m not sure if she says yes. I’m so emotional for all different reasons. I know I need to talk to Max to get all the answers. Truthfully, I’m scared to know. How come I don’t remember being adopted at eleven, and the baby pictures of me on the wall? Were they really me? Why the lies?
The couple hug and kiss, so I guess she said yes. Will I ever get this? A happily ever after? Or is this another goodbye between Max and me?
It all makes sense why I’m so different from Bethany and Justin. I look nothing like them.
Who are my biological parents?
My phone buzzes for the millionth time. Justin, Max, and Dad, or should I call him
