Lucas, I need to ask you something. Is the accusation true?
I typed a response, deleted it, and tried again.
How could I explain the entire situation in a few lines?
How could I ask him to believe me without demanding that he ignore the facts?
Eventually, I wrote:
I did not know about the inheritance when I agreed to the wedding. I have refused it. However, I recognize that marrying a patient was a serious error in judgment, and I am cooperating fully with the hospital’s review.
He replied that he hoped the truth would emerge.
It was not an expression of confidence.
It was not an accusation, either.
For the first time, I understood how easily a person’s life could become a question mark in someone else’s mind.
Then my father called.
“The shop could use a hand,” he said.
I frowned.
“What shop?”
“Mine, Lucas. The same one you’ve been visiting since you were a boy.”
