Serena’s POV
I pulled her closer to , feeling her tiny heartbeat against mine. "Mommy will always be right here with you. Always."
She hiccupped a few tis, her sobs gradually subsiding. "Promise? And Daddy too? You won’t leave each other? You’ll both stay with forever?"
My smile felt strained, but I kept it in place for her sake. "Of course we will. We’ll always be here for you."
"Try to sleep a little more now," I murmured, stroking her hair. "Then we can go ho."
The doctor had already assured that Rancy’s condition wasn’t serious. She wouldn’t need to stay overnight—just so dication for a few days would do. Still, watching my baby girl lying in that hospital bed, her face pale and tear-stained, felt like soone was stabbing repeatedly in the chest.
After Rancy finally drifted off to sleep, her breathing deep and even, I motioned for Cedric to follow into the hallway. As soon as the door closed behind us, I crossed my arms over my chest, ready for explanations.
Cedric didn’t wait for my question. "Rancy’s never had much self-control with ice cream," he said, running a hand through his hair. "I specifically told her teachers not to give her too much. I can’t believe she got sick from just a little bit."
He leaned against the wall, looking genuinely concerned. "As for what she said... it’s just playground talk. Since I’ve been the one picking her up and dropping her off at preschool lately, the other kids have been saying things..."
"I don’t think that’s the whole story, Cedric," I said. The sterile hallway lights cast harsh shadows across his handso face, making it easier for to see through his practiced charm.
Cedric ran a hand through his hair, his smile faltering just slightly. "Kids say all sorts of things, Serena. You know how they are—they hear bits of adult conversations and twist them into sothing else entirely."
"That doesn’t answer my question." My voice was quiet but firm. The old Serena might have accepted his vague explanation, desperate to keep peace, but sothing had shifted inside lately. "Why would other children specifically tell Rancy that I’m going to leave, that I don’t want her or her daddy?"
His eyes darted away for a split second. "So of the mothers at the preschool gossip. They’ve seen dropping Rancy off alone most days. People talk."
"And what exactly do they say, Cedric?" I pressed, taking a step closer.
"Nothing important." He reached for my hand, but I pulled back.
"Important enough to make our daughter cry and ask if I’m abandoning her." The maternal fury rising in was impossible to contain.
"I was handling it," he snapped, his patience clearly wearing thin. "I’ve been talking to the teachers, reassuring Rancy. What were you going to do about it, anyway? You’ve been so busy with your work—"
"Don’t you dare," I hissed. "Don’t you dare make this about my work when you’ve been filling her head with—" I stopped myself, rembering we were in a hospital hallway.
"With what, exactly?" Cedric’s eyes narrowed. "Go ahead, say it. What do you think I’ve been telling our daughter?"
"I don’t know what to think anymore, Cedric. But I do know that children don’t just randomly start worrying their mother will leave unless soone puts the idea in their heads."
He straightened, his jaw clenched tight. "Maybe they start worrying when their mother is never around."
Cedric’s reaction was too strange—he was desperate for Rancy to convince to stay by his side; he must have conveyed his anxiety to her. My emotions settled, and I realized I needed to confirm sothing.
I decided to take a risk. "I didn’t an to snap at you, Cedric. I’m sorry. It’s just that I haven’t been in a good place ntally lately. I’ve been having dreams, Cedric. Strange dreams that feel like mories."
His face froze for just a millisecond—so brief I would have missed it if I hadn’t been watching carefully. "Dreams?"
"Yes," I continued, studying his reaction. "Fragnts, really. Places I’ve never been, people I don’t recognize... except sotis I do, in a way I can’t explain."
"That’s normal after head trauma," he said quickly, too quickly. "The doctors said your mind might play tricks on you."
"Did they?" I leaned against the wall, feigning exhaustion. "The strangest thing is that in these dreams, you and I... we’re different. Our relationship isn’t what I thought it was."
His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed hard. "What do you an?"
"In one dream, I was at a party—so kind of fancy gala. You were there, but you weren’t with . You were watching from across the room, like you were waiting for sothing." I was completely fabricating this, but the way his pupils dilated told my instincts were right.
"Dreams are just dreams, Serena." His voice had an edge now. "You shouldn’t read too much into them."
"Maybe," I conceded, then decided to push further. "But what if they’re not just dreams? My doctor ntioned that my mories might start returning naturally. What if that’s what’s happening?"
The flash of panic in his eyes was unmistakable this ti. "What doctor? When did you see a doctor without telling ?"
"After the DNA test," I replied smoothly. "They ntioned that trauma-induced amnesia often resolves itself eventually. That fragnts of mory return first, often in dreams."
Cedric’s face paled visibly. "And what did they say about... about how much you might rember?"
"Everything, potentially," I said, watching him like a hawk. "Given enough ti."
His shoulders tensed, and he turned away, ostensibly to check on Rancy through the small window in her hospital room door. "I think you should focus on getting better, not chasing phantoms from your past."
"My past isn’t a phantom, Cedric. It’s real, and I have a right to know it."
He turned back, his charming smile firmly back in place, though it didn’t reach his eyes. "Of course you do, darling. I’m just worried about you, that’s all. These false mories could confuse you even more."
"False mories?" I challenged. "How do you know they’re false if I haven’t even told you what I’m rembering?"
His smile faltered again. "I just ant—"
"What aren’t you telling , Cedric?" I asked bluntly. "What are you so afraid I’ll rember?"
"Nothing!" he snapped, his composure cracking. "I’m trying to protect you!"
"From what? The truth?"
"You don’t understand," he hissed, glancing around to make sure no one was listening. "There are things you’re better off not knowing."
"That’s not your decision to make," I fired back. "Rancy is confused and hurting because of secrets and lies. I won’t let that continue."
His expression hardened. "And what about her security? Her stability? You want to upend her entire world because you’re having so bad dreams?"
"Don’t use our daughter as a shield, Cedric." My voice was ice cold now. "If you really cared about her stability, you wouldn’t be poisoning her against ."
"I’ve done no such thing!"
"Then explain why she thinks I’m going to leave her!"
He ran both hands through his hair in frustration. "This conversation is going nowhere. I need so air." He turned on his heel. "Tell Rancy I’ll be back in a bit."
As I watched him storm off down the hospital corridor, a strange calmness settled over . I’d seen all I needed to see. The panic in his eyes when I ntioned my "returning mories" confird every suspicion I’d been harboring.
Cedric Lancaster was lying to —had been lying all along. About what, I wasn’t entirely sure yet, but I would find out.
I took a deep breath and went back into Rancy’s room. Her little face was peaceful in sleep now. I gently stroked her hair, my heart aching with love and determination.
"I promise I’ll figure this out, baby girl." I whispered.
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