She never told him.
She gave birth to a son named Mike.
“And your granddaughter told you all this?”
“Yes.”
“How does she know?”
“Helen told her.”
Mike had grown up never knowing who his father was. Helen apparently planned to tell him eventually.
She thought she had time.
Then Mike died unexpectedly three years ago.
He was 41.
He had an undiagnosed heart problem.
His daughter, Ariella, was 21.
After Mike died, Helen was consumed by guilt.
She had lost her chance to tell her son the truth.
So she told Ariella instead.
She gave her Robert’s full name, where he’d grown up, and everything she remembered about him.
She also admitted she’d never told Robert about the pregnancy.
“Why tell Ariella?” I asked.
“Because she said she couldn’t die with the secret too.”
“And then?”
“Helen died a year after Mike died.”
Robert rubbed his face.
“Ariella lost her father. Then her grandmother. They were basically her whole family.”
“Basically?”
“Her mother left when she was little.”
I looked away.
“So she came looking for you.”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“She found me online.”
“And you are really sure that she is your granddaughter?”
“At first, I thought it was a scam.”
