Then she took out a camera.
I turned slowly toward Mark. “Do you know her?”
He kept his eyes on the road.
“Mark,” I pressed, my voice trembling. “You know her, don’t you?”
“She’s my mother,” he said finally.
“You told me she was a monster!”
“I told you we didn’t have a relationship.”
“You said she wasn’t safe.”
“You know her, don’t you?”
“I said she wasn’t part of my life,” he snapped.
“That’s not the same thing.”
He exhaled sharply but didn’t argue.
When we pulled into the driveway, I pushed the door open before the car had fully stopped. We found Mrs. Higgins, or whoever she was, sitting calmly on the couch, holding Noah against her chest.
Liam slept in the crib. The house was peaceful.
Mrs. Higgins looked up when we burst inside.
“Mark,” she said softly.
We found Mrs. Higgins, or whoever she was, sitting calmly on the couch.
“Mom, don’t,” he replied immediately.
I stepped forward. “Start explaining.”
Mrs. Higgins gently placed Noah in the crib and faced us.
“My name is Margaret,” she said. “I work for the agency under the name Mrs. Higgins because families warm up to the name better. But I wore the wig and makeup because I knew Mark would recognize me. And I knew he wouldn’t let me near the children.”
“You lied to us,” I said.
“Yes,” she answered calmly. “I did.”
“My name is Margaret.”
“Why?”
Her eyes glistened, but she didn’t look away. “Because I wanted to see Mark and my grandchildren.”
Mark let out a bitter laugh. “You don’t get to play grandmother.”
“I never stopped being your mother,” she replied gently.
“You lost that right.”
“I lost custody,” she corrected quietly. “There’s a difference.”
“What happened?” I asked. “Because clearly I don’t know the whole story.”
“You don’t get to play grandmother.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Mark said.
“It matters to me,” I said firmly.
Margaret folded her hands together. “His father didn’t want him. I didn’t have money or support. The court didn’t listen.”
“You failed,” Mark shot back.
“I was young and alone. But I never stopped loving you. I’ve been sending money every month since the twins were born. I wanted to help.”
“You failed.”
“I should’ve sent it back,” Mark said roughly. “That was my mistake.”