My jaw tightened.
But I said nothing.
Behind me, Emma and Clara had gone still.
“Who’s there, Dad?” Clara asked softly.
I took a breath.
“It’s your… mother.”
The silence that followed felt endless.
Lauren walked further in, her heels clicking against the worn floor.
“Girls!” she said brightly. “Look at you. You’re so grown up.”
Emma didn’t react.
“We can’t see, remember? We’re blind. Isn’t that why you left us?”
For a moment, Lauren faltered.
Then she smiled again.
“Of course. I meant… you’ve grown so much. I’ve thought about you every single day.”
“Funny,” Clara replied coldly. “We haven’t thought about you at all.”
I had never been prouder.
Lauren cleared her throat.
“I came back for a reason. I have something for you.”
She placed two garment bags on the couch.
Then an envelope.
Thick. Heavy.
Deliberate.
“These are designer gowns,” she said. “And there’s cash here too. Enough to change your lives.”
Emma and Clara held hands.
“Why?” I asked. “Why now?”
Lauren smirked.
“Because I want my daughters back.”
She placed a document on top.
