CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
The following morning, Aisha returned to her mother's bedroom with the photograph in her hand.
"Mum, I need you to tell me everything about Dad."
Grace looked up from the clothes she was folding.
"Your father was a good man, Aisha. He wasn't wealthy, and he didn't have Richard's connections, but he loved you with everything he had."
"Did he know about Richard?"
"Yes. I told Samuel about my past before we got married. He knew Richard and I had once loved each other."
"Was he ever worried that Richard would come back?"
Grace sat down.
"Samuel trusted me. He never made me feel guilty for the life I had before him."
Aisha lowered herself into the chair opposite her.
"Then what happened after I was born?"
Grace was quiet for a moment.
"Richard visited the hospital because he had heard I had given birth. He wanted to know whether I was safe. Samuel knew about the visit, and he didn't object. They spoke privately, and after that, Richard left us alone."
"Do you know what they discussed?"
"No. Samuel never told me."
Aisha frowned.
"That doesn't make sense."
"Your father sometimes kept things to himself, but he never stopped loving you. Before he died, he left me a letter. I kept it with his belongings."
Grace went to her wardrobe and removed a small box. Inside were old cards, photographs and a folded envelope.
Aisha recognised her father's handwriting immediately.
She opened the letter carefully.
My dear Grace,
If Aisha ever grows up and asks difficult questions about our past, please don't let fear stop you from telling her the truth. She deserves to know where she came from, but more importantly, she deserves to know that she was always wanted and loved.
Whatever happens, never allow anyone to make her feel that her life began with a mistake.
Aisha pressed the letter against her chest.
She remembered her father's gentle voice, the way he used to tell her stories and how he always called her his little sunshine.
For the first time in days, her anger gave way to grief.
"I miss him," she whispered.
Grace moved beside her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
"So do I."
Daniel stood quietly near the doorway, giving them space.
After a while, Aisha wiped her eyes and looked at the letter again.
"Dad knew that one day I'd ask these questions."
"Perhaps he knew the past might return," Grace said.
Aisha carefully folded the letter.
"Then I won't let fear control me. I'll find out what happened, but I won't let anyone destroy the memory I have of him."
Daniel nodded in agreement.
As they prepared to leave, Grace mentioned something else.
"Samuel kept a diary. I haven't seen it since we moved from our old house."
Aisha turned immediately.
"Where did he keep it?"
"In his study. There may be something in it that explains why he never spoke about Richard again."
Aisha looked at Daniel.
Their next step was clear.
They had to find her father's diary.
Because the answers they needed might have been waiting for them all along.