Lucas covered his mouth.
That was his birthday.
“I was there.”
My fingers tightened around the armrest.
“I held him.”
The photograph.
“The woman who gave birth to him was young, frightened, and completely alone.”
Lucas’s eyes filled.
Elena took his hand.
“She asked me to promise that the baby would go to people who would love him.”
Another pause.
“I knew of two people who desperately wanted a child.”
Douglas whispered, “Margaret and me.”
The recording continued.
“I told myself I was doing one good thing after doing so many bad ones.”
My mother’s voice cracked.
“But good intentions do not erase hidden truth.”
Lucas stood.
“What hidden truth?”
Of course the tape couldn’t answer him.
Not yet.
“I contacted Walter Pierce. He arranged everything. Douglas and Margaret were never told my involvement.”
Douglas shook his head slowly.
“No.”
“They believed the placement came through an agency.”
