The first pages were filled with dates stretching back nearly thirty years.
At first, they seemed like ordinary notes about work and finances.
Then I found names I had never seen before.
Women.
Addresses.
Large cash payments.
My heart began racing.
"What is all this?"
"I didn't understand either," Ethan replied. "Until I found the envelopes."
I opened one.
Inside was a letter written in Richard's handwriting.
It wasn't addressed to me.
It was addressed to a woman named Caroline.
The letter apologized for abandoning her and promised to send money for their child.
My entire body went numb.
"Our child..."
I whispered the words aloud.
"There are more," Ethan said quietly.
"There were three different women."
I shook my head.
"No..."
"I checked every document. They're real."
Birth certificates.
Court records.
Old photographs.
Richard had lived another life long before he met me.
And somehow, he had hidden every trace of it.
Suddenly, the sound of tires crunching across the driveway broke the silence.
Ethan froze.
"He's home."
The front door opened.
Richard walked inside carrying his briefcase.
The moment he saw Ethan, his expression hardened.
"So," he said coldly. "You finally decided to come back."
Then his eyes dropped to the baby.
"What is that?"
"My responsibility," Ethan answered.
Richard laughed.
"You couldn't even take care of yourself."
Without saying a word, I placed the journal and the letters on the dining table.
Richard's smile disappeared.
He recognized them instantly.
His face lost all color.
"Where did you get those?" he asked, barely able to speak.
Ethan stood up slowly.
"Does it matter?"
Richard took a step forward.
"Answer me."
"No."
"It matters because for the first time in my life... I'm not afraid of you."
The room fell silent.
Richard looked at me.
"I can explain."
I looked back at him, tears running down my face.
"For twenty-three years, I believed I knew the man I married."
I placed Lily gently in her carrier.
Then I pushed the stack of letters toward him.
"Start explaining."
Richard lowered his head.
For the first time since I'd known him...
He had absolutely nothing to say.
