The Little Lies We Hide by Francois Houle

Author:Francois Houle [Houle, François]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Family life fiction, family tragedy fiction, family saga fiction, women's domestic life fiction, mothers and children fiction, small town and rural fiction
ISBN: 9781989734001
Publisher: Francois Houle
Published: 2019-12-05T05:00:00+00:00

EIGHTEEN

The air in the room was gone and no one could breathe. It was like they’d all arrived at the scene of a fatal car accident and were trying to figure out what had happened, who was hurt, and where the hell the first responders were.

Where was the help?

They needed help in the worst way.

Cassandra recoiled, folding into herself, hoping to disappear. She had just dropped the H-bomb on them and the looks of shock, anger, and blame shrivelled her heart into a tiny wilted flower.

What had she done?

Instead of David looking shocked, he looked triumphant.

“How long have you known?” Cassandra said.

The look on his face was answer enough. To think that she was the only one who had noticed the signs when Angel was young had been foolish. It made sense now, his distance to Angel, and hate for her. No wonder he’d run to Josée.

“I never had proof,” David said. “Just suspicions that I kept hoping were wrong.”

When she had found out she was pregnant and David had proposed, she had seen their life together as a road full of possibilities. Yes, on her wedding day she had been full of doubts, but it had passed. Her life had been changing so fast and it had frightened her. But David had been just like the David who had come to her field hockey games and cheered her on. Once again, he had been the boy she had fallen in love with.

Then Angel was born and she had never seen him so happy.

When she’d begun to doubt who Angel’s father was, and especially by the time she actually found out the truth, it was too late to change anything. Her life had become a lie, a lie to hide the truth. Convincing herself that David hadn’t figured it out was also another lie she’d wanted to believe. Angel was left-handed, unlike David. She had auburn hair, unlike David. She was kind, empathetic, quietly strong.

Cassandra looked away, ashamed for what she had just done. She wasn’t going to blame the alcohol for her lack of judgement. This mess was on her, all of it. She owned it.

And loathed it.

“I’m sorry,” she said in a tiny voice. “I wasn’t thinking.”

“What are you talking about?” Bradley said.

“What do you mean Dad isn’t my father?” Angel said, looking like her mom had just plunged a knife into her heart. “Mom?”

“How long have you known this?” Bradley said.

“Mom! How long have you known this?”

“Cassie? This is . . . I don’t know what this means,” Bradley said. “What does it mean? Who’s Angel’s father?”

Angel stood and faced her mom, who was still looking down. She screamed, “Mom, who’s my dad?”

Cassandra couldn’t meet her daughter’s eyes—her beautiful daughter who reminded her a lot of herself, and a lot more of her real father. She was a beautiful soul, bubbly when happy, withdrawn when sad.

Of course, David would have noticed all these differences. She had wanted to believe that he wouldn’t see. Hoped that he hadn’t noticed since he’d paid so little attention to them.

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