Chapter 8
Meeting Arthur happened on a hot, stuffy afternoon. He was dressed casually. Maybe because he now had a daughter, his eyes seemed softer, his demeanor more gentle. He acted calm, making polite small talk like we were old friends who hadn’t met in years. It was clear he’d been happy these past five years; I was the only one who’d struggled.
He took my daughter, Lucy. When it was time for me to see her, he kept making excuses, saying he wanted more time with her. I tried calling Lucy’s watch–phone, but no one answered. I started
to worry.
I went to Arthur’s office to confront him. He politely invited me in, asking about my hardships over the years. I ignored that, kicked over his desk, and demanded to know where Lucy was.
He calmly sipped his coffee and glanced at the fallen desk. Then he said softly, “Lucy’s sister has kidney failure. They’re a match. I’m sorry, but you’ll have to wait until after the surgery.”
I froze, feeling cold all over. I couldn’t bear to think of Lucy on the operating table, crying for her mom with no answer. In a way, I’d handed her over to this. I hated myself.
Crying, I reached for my phone to call the police, but Arthur grabbed it. He looked at me with guilt in his eyes and said hoarsely, “The surgery starts in an hour.”
Chapter 8
I screamed, “Arthur, you’re not human! I hate you!”
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He nodded, took a deep breath, and said, “I’m sorry, but I can’t just watch Karry…”
He loved Karry so much. If not for this meeting, he wouldn’t even know Lucy’s name. But Lucy thought he was the best dad.
Lucy was usually quiet. Once, when a boy insulted her dad, she furiously fought him. Her eyes were red, but she didn’t cry. She only cried when she saw me.
For years, she’d suffered without a dad to stand up for her. But her dad was still her hero in a thousand drawings.
What Lucy didn’t know was that in her dad’s eyes, only Sophie’s daughter mattered. Because her dad didn’t love her mom, Lucy was just a source of organs to him.
Arthur might feel guilty at midnight, but if he could go back, he’d still sacrifice Lucy for his younger daughter, even if it meant Lucy dying.
I raised my hand and slapped him hard. He turned back slowly, trying to calm me down. “I’ve hired the best surgeon. Lucy won’t be in any danger. Donating a kidney won’t affect her daily life.”
He paused when he saw my red eyes. He explained, “Lucy was upset at first, but she calmed down when she saw me. I told her about her sick sister needing a kidney. When I asked, she didn’t refuse. She just asked when she could see her mom.”
Chapter 8
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Arthur said this calmly. My heart clenched with pain and anger. I clenched my fists so hard my nails dug into my palms.
I said through gritted teeth, “Lucy stopped fighting when she saw you not because she cared about a sister she’s never met, but because she felt hopeless about you as a father!”
“For five years, thousands of days and nights, you weren’t there for her.”
“When she was called names for not having a dad, you weren’t
there.”
“When she had a fever for days, calling for her dad in her sleep, you weren’t there.”
“When she knew I cried at night because of you, and she dressed up in other dads‘ clothes to comfort me, pretending to be you, you weren’t there.”
“Every moment she needed you, you weren’t there.”
“Lucy had been told her dad was coming to see her.”
“She was so excited she couldn’t sleep for days.”
“She spent all her allowance to buy you a gift, worried that if she didn’t behave, you wouldn’t like her.”
“She always saw you as the hero who would bring happiness to her and her mom.”
Chapter 6
“tintil the moment you put her on the operating she finally realized.”
“You weren’t the hero from her thousand drawings, but the demon dragging her to hel
After saying all this, I was in tear
Arthur’s face turned pale, his indifferent eyes listening, with
lears.
AIA
His lips trembled, he opened his mouth to say something, but no words came ou
