I remember that day clearly\u2014the tension in the car was thick. Dad was driving, his grip tight on the wheel, while I stared out the window, frustrated.<\/p>\n
“Why do I have to do this on my day off?” I snapped. “Couldn’t you have taken a taxi?”<\/p>\n
Dad shot me a look. “Your mother needs help. Isn’t it too much to ask you to help her pack?”<\/p>\n
I huffed. “You know our relationship.”<\/p>\n
“I know. You haven’t spoken in years. You’re as stubborn as her,” he said, raising his voice.<\/p>\n
“She ruined my life, Dad!” I fired back.<\/p>\n
“Don’t exaggerate. She wanted you to have a good education.”<\/p>\n
“All I did was study and follow her plans. It was never enough.”<\/p>\n
“She loved you, Lucy.”<\/p>\n
I turned away. “Funny, my life got better when I stopped talking to her.”<\/p>\n
When we arrived at my parents’ house, I stormed inside, frustrated. The familiar smell of dust filled the air as Todd followed me.<\/p>\n
“What do we need to take?” I asked, masking my irritation.<\/p>\n
Todd handed me a list, and I helped him with it. Upstairs, packing my mother\u2019s things, I found a note at the bottom: \u201cDo not show Lucy.\u201d<\/p>\n
My heart raced. What was hidden from me?<\/p>\n
I found a videotape in the safe, tucked behind the jewelry box, and took it home. The footage showed my parents, young and happy, with a little girl. My mother called her “Chloe.”<\/p>\n
My mind raced\u2014who was Chloe? I’d always been Lucy.<\/p>\n
I drove back to the nursing home, desperate for answers. Inside, the receptionist recognized me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour mom talks about you all the time,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
I found my mom in her room, sitting with Todd. \u201cI need to talk to you,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n
I showed her the tape. \u201cDo you want to explain this?\u201d<\/p>\n
Mom\u2019s face went pale. \u201cLucy\u2026 we never meant for you to find out this way.\u201d<\/p>\n
She broke down, revealing that I wasn\u2019t their biological child. “Chloe was our first daughter, but she died in a car accident. We adopted you, and we loved you like our own.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"