My pulse raced. “Lily,” I breathed, “how many times have you been here when he came?”
“Two,” she whispered. “Grandma brought me once. She said it was ‘errands.’ And Dad… Dad didn’t see me. He was talking to a lady… and crying.”
Crying?
That punched through my anger, landing somewhere colder.
Then I heard it—Nathan’s laugh, faint and muffled, from behind the freezer doors.
Through the crack beneath the door, something slid across the floor:
A manila envelope.
Thick. Heavy. Stamped in red letters:
“PATERNITY.”
I stared, frozen.
Lily looked up, confused. “Mom… what does that mean?”
I forced my voice steady. “It means… someone is deciding something about family,” I whispered.
Inside the room, footsteps shifted. Paper rustled. Nathan’s voice drifted through the door—low and strained.
“I told you I’d pay,” he said. “Just keep it quiet.”
A woman responded—steady, almost uninterested. “It’s not about quiet,” she said. “It’s about compliance. And your wife can’t know. Not yet.”
My legs wobbled. I pulled Lily back a step, hiding behind a stack of frozen pizzas. My heartbeat pounded against my ribs.
Lily whispered, “That’s Dad.”
“I know,” I breathed.
I fished out my phone and started recording audio near my hip. Not because I wanted to “catch” him—because suddenly the truth felt dangerous, and having proof seemed like the only way to protect myself later.
Then the door opened.
Rick stepped out again, eyes alert. He scanned the aisle, spotted me instantly, and his face tightened.
“Ma’am,” he said, calm but clipped, “I told you not to be here.”
I forced a neutral smile. “Sorry,” I said. “My daughter wanted ice cream.”
Rick’s eyes flicked to Lily—then back at me. “You need to go,” he repeated.
Before I could respond, the freezer door swung wider behind him.
And Nathan walked out.
For an instant, everything froze.
Nathan’s face drained when he saw me. The envelope in his hand stalled mid-air. His mouth opened, but no words came.
“Mom?” Lily whispered, like she couldn’t believe it.
Nathan’s eyes went from Lily to me. His voice rasped. “You… you weren’t supposed to be here.”
Something inside me solidified. “Neither were you,” I said quietly. “Dallas, right?”
Nathan swallowed. “I can explain.”
Rick shifted, placing himself subtly between us like a barrier. “Sir,” he said under his breath, “we need to move.”
Nathan ignored him. He held up the envelope, his hand trembling. “It’s not what you think,” he said quickly. “It’s—”
A woman appeared behind Nathan—the same one from Aisle 4. She looked at me like I was an annoyance.
“Mrs. Carter?” she asked, as if she already knew who I was.
My stomach turned. “Who are you?”
She gave a thin smile. “My name is Dr. Elaine Porter,” she said. “And your husband has been helping us locate a child.”
“A child?” I repeated, dizzy.
Nathan’s eyes begged me. “I didn’t want you dragged into this,” he whispered. “That’s why I lied.”
Dr. Porter nodded toward Lily—soft but calculating. “Your daughter is safe,” she said. “But your husband made decisions that placed your family on a list.”
“A list of what?” I demanded.
Rick’s voice lowered, urgent. “We have cameras,” he warned. “This isn’t the place.”
Nathan gripped my wrist gently. “Go to the car,” he whispered. “Right now. Don’t ask anything here.”
I pulled my wrist back. “Tell me the truth,” I said.
Nathan’s eyes filled, his voice cracking. “I took a paternity test,” he said. “For a boy. And if it’s positive…”
For illustrative purpose only
He swallowed.
“They’ll come for him,” he whispered. “And they’ll use us to reach him.”
Dr. Porter’s smile vanished. “Time,” she said to Rick.
Rick stepped forward, blocking my way.
And Nathan leaned closer, trembling, whispering words that froze my blood:
“Lily was right to stop you… because they’re not here to hide my affair. They’re here to make me deliver someone.”
Rick’s body closed the aisle like a gate. Shoppers passed by without noticing—danger doesn’t always look like danger under fluorescent lights.
Nathan’s eyes silently urged me to cooperate.
“Go,” he mouthed.
Dr. Porter tilted her head, listening to her earpiece. “We’re exposed,” she murmured. “Move them.”
My stomach plummeted. Them. Not him.
I tightened my grip on Lily. “Lily,” I whispered, “stay right beside me.”
Rick spoke smoothly. “Ma’am, we need to talk somewhere private.”
I forced out a laugh that sounded wrong. “If you need to talk, you can talk right here,” I said loudly enough for nearby shoppers to notice. “Unless you’re hiding something from witnesses.”
Rick’s jaw clenched.
Nathan moved closer, trying to shield us. “Stop,” he told Rick—quiet but firm. “Not here.”
Dr. Porter’s eyes narrowed. “Mr. Carter,” she said, “you signed the cooperation agreement.”
“I signed because you said it was to protect him,” Nathan snapped.
“Him?” I repeated, my voice rising.