Lorraine walked to him and affectionately adjusted his shirt collar with a level of intimacy that turned my stomach.
In one instant, every strange memory fell into place.
The mysterious gifts.
Deleted phone records.
Afternoons when Chad claimed he was running errands.
My mother’s complete lack of remorse while framing me.
“No,” I whispered in horror.
My mother smiled coldly and admitted, “Yes, Genevieve. Chad and I have been together for over four years.”
She explained that their affair started after she felt neglected by me, complaining I was always consumed by my executive career, raising Toby, and handling household finances.
Chad gave her attention.
Their secret meetings soon became a coordinated plan.
“He made me feel valued,” Lorraine said without shame. “You never cared about how lonely I was.”
I stared at her in disbelief.
“You sent your own daughter to prison because you felt lonely?”
“Do not oversimplify complex human emotions,” she snapped.
“Is that also why you helped him falsify my fertility documents years ago?” I demanded.
Her face hardened while Chad stepped forward, saying, “We needed a child to secure our financial future.”
“You needed a leverage tool,” I corrected him bitterly.
Chad yelled, “I was securing my family’s legacy!”
I let out a harsh, sarcastic laugh and asked, “Which family, Chad? The one you built with me, or the secret one you shared with my mother?”
Lorraine stepped forward and slapped my face hard.
“You have always been just like Christopher! Cold, arrogant, and thinking that because you can analyze a balance sheet you are better than everyone else!”
“Christopher did not even raise me!” I shouted back.
“But you carry his arrogant blood!” she spat.
That sentence finally exposed the envy that had been rotting inside her for decades.
Lorraine had loved and hated my father at the same time.
When she became pregnant with me, she expected Christopher to abandon his career and marry her.
Instead, Christopher offered financial support and parental recognition while ending their broken relationship.
Lorraine considered that an unforgivable humiliation.
She prevented him from seeing me and spent decades teaching me to believe he had abandoned us.
When Chad entered the picture, she found a willing accomplice who shared her bitterness.
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