Chapter 72 Unexpected Father

Chapter 72 Unexpected Father
POV: Lily Morrison
The envelope sat on my kitchen table for three days before I could bring myself to open it.
Dr. Chen had ordered comprehensive genetic testing for Emma as part of her ongoing medical monitoring. The mercury poisoning I'd suffered during pregnancy meant Emma needed regular checkups to ensure there were no developmental issues. So far, she'd been perfectly healthy, but the doctors wanted to be thorough.
I hadn't expected the testing to reveal anything about me. Tony noticed me staring at the envelope again over breakfast. Emma babbled happily in her high chair, smearing oatmeal across her face.
"Are you going to open that, or just keep glaring at it?" Tony asked, sipping his coffee.
"It's genetic test results," I said. "For Emma. Dr. Chen said there was something unusual they needed to discuss with me."
Tony set down his coffee cup. "Unusual how?"
"She wouldn't say over the phone. Just that it wasn't anything medically concerning." I picked up the envelope, feeling its weight. "What if they found something about Alex? Some genetic disorder he passed down?"
"Only one way to find out."
I tore open the envelope before I could change my mind. The first page was Emma's genetic profile. Everything looked normal. Healthy. No markers for inherited diseases or disorders. I exhaled in relief. But there was a second page. A note from Dr. Chen in her neat handwriting.
"Lily, during Emma's genetic testing, we ran your DNA as well for comparison purposes. We discovered something unexpected. The man listed on your birth certificate as your father, David Morrison, is not your biological father. I've included contact information for a genetic counselor if you'd like to discuss this further. Please call me. Dr. Chen."
The paper slipped from my hands and fluttered to the floor.
"Lily?" Tony was beside me immediately. "What is it?"
"My father," I whispered. "David Morrison wasn't my biological father."
Tony picked up the paper and read it quickly. "Did you know?"
"No. I had no idea." My mind raced. "My mother never said anything. Neither did my father. I mean, the man I thought was my father." I pressed my hands against my temples. "This doesn't make sense. They were married for thirty-five years. They seemed happy."
"People have secrets," Tony said gently.
I thought about my childhood. My father had been kind, quiet, always there for school events and bedtime stories. He'd taught me to ride a bike and helped me with homework. He'd walked me down the aisle at my first wedding, tears in his eyes.
He died when I was twenty-six, two years before my mother passed. I'd never questioned that he was my biological father. Why would I?
"The genetic testing found a match," Tony said, still reading the paper. "Someone in their database shares significant DNA with you. They're listed as your biological father."
My stomach dropped. "What?"
Tony handed me another page I hadn't noticed. It showed a genetic match with probability of paternity at 99.97 percent.
The name listed was Thomas Bennett. Age sixty-two. Last known address in a town called Seabrook, about three hours north along the coast.
"I have to find him," I said.
"Are you sure?" Tony asked carefully. "This is a lot to process. Maybe take some time to think about it."
"I've spent my whole life not knowing the truth about things," I said. "Alex lied to me about everything. Sarah lied. Even my own memories were twisted by drugs and trauma." I looked at the paper again. "If this Thomas Bennett is really my biological father, I want to know. I want the truth, even if it's complicated."
Tony nodded. "Then let's find him."
It took Tony's team two hours to locate Thomas Bennett. He owned a small bookstore called Bennett's Books in downtown Seabrook. No criminal record, no social media presence, no red flags.
"Seems like a regular guy," Tony said, showing me the information his investigators had compiled. "Widowed five years ago. Wife died of cancer. No children. Lives above his bookstore. Pretty quiet life."
I stared at the photo they'd found on the bookstore's basic website. Thomas Bennett had kind eyes and gray hair. He looked gentle, with smile lines around his eyes.
He looked nothing like me.
"What if he doesn't want to meet me?" I asked.
"Then that's his loss," Tony said firmly. "But you won't know until you try."
I called the bookstore number the next morning, my hands shaking.
The phone rang three times before a soft voice answered. "Bennett's Books, this is Thomas speaking."
"Hello," I said, my voice catching. "My name is Lily Morrison. I received some genetic testing results recently, and they indicate that you might be my biological father."
Silence on the other end. Long enough that I thought he'd hung up.
"Hello?" I tried again.
"I'm here," Thomas said quietly. "I'm just trying to process what you said. You're sure about this? The genetic testing?"
"99.97 percent certain."
Another pause. Then, "What was your mother's name?"
"Catherine Morrison. But her maiden name was Catherine Wells."
I heard a sharp intake of breath. "Katie. We called her Katie."
"You knew her?"
"Thirty-one years ago," Thomas said, his voice thick with emotion. "We dated for about six months. It was brief but intense. She was studying art history at the university in Seattle. I was running a bookstore near campus." He cleared his throat. "She ended things suddenly. Said she'd met someone else. I never knew why. Never knew she was pregnant."
"She married David Morrison," I said. "He raised me as his own. He died five years ago. My mother died three years ago. Neither of them ever told me."
"I'm so sorry for your losses," Thomas said. "And I'm sorry your mother didn't feel she could tell you the truth. That must be painful."
His kindness made tears spring to my eyes. "Would you be willing to meet? I understand if this is too much, or if you need time to think about it."
"Yes," he said immediately. "Yes, I'd like to meet you very much. When were you thinking?"
"Is tomorrow too soon?"
"Tomorrow is perfect."
The drive to Seabrook took exactly three hours and fifteen minutes. Tony insisted on coming with me, and I didn't argue. Emma slept in her car seat the whole way, peaceful and content.
Seabrook was a small coastal town with a main street full of local shops and restaurants. Bennett's Books sat between a coffee shop and a yarn store. The storefront was painted deep blue with gold lettering, and the window display showed carefully arranged books with handwritten recommendation cards.
"It looks cozy," Tony said.
I couldn't move. I just sat in the car, staring at the bookstore.
"What if he's disappointed when he meets me?" I asked. "What if he finds out about everything that happened with Alex and decides I'm too damaged?"
"Then he's an idiot," Tony said. "But I don't think that's going to happen."
I took a deep breath and got out of the car. Tony lifted Emma from her car seat, and we walked to the bookstore together.
A bell chimed when we opened the door. The shop was everything I'd imagined from the outside. Floor to ceiling bookshelves packed with books of all kinds. Soft classical music playing from hidden speakers. The smell of old paper and coffee. A few comfortable chairs scattered around for reading.
A man emerged from behind the counter. Thomas Bennett, exactly as he'd looked in the photo but somehow more real. He wore a cardigan and glasses and had gentle eyes that filled with tears the moment he saw me.
"Lily," he said softly.
"Thomas," I replied.
We stood there awkwardly for a moment. Then Thomas stepped forward and opened his arms tentatively, asking permission. I walked into his embrace, and he hugged me carefully, like I was something precious.
"I can't believe you're real," he whispered. "I can't believe I have a daughter."
When we pulled apart, he was crying openly. I was too.
"I'm sorry," he said, wiping his eyes. "I promised myself I wouldn't cry. I wanted to be calm and composed."
"It's okay," I said. "I'm crying too."
Thomas noticed Tony holding Emma. "Is this your husband? And is that a baby?"
"This is Tony Stark. He's my friend and business partner." I didn't know how else to explain what Tony was to me. "And this is my daughter, Emma Grace. She's eight months old."
"May I?" Thomas asked, reaching toward Emma.
Tony carefully transferred Emma to Thomas's arms. Emma looked up at this stranger with her serious dark eyes, studying him.
Thomas gazed down at her with pure wonder. "Hello, Emma Grace. I'm your grandfather." His voice broke on the last word. "I never thought I'd get to say that."
Emma reached up and grabbed Thomas's glasses, pulling them askew. He laughed through his tears.
"She's beautiful," he said, looking at me. "You're both beautiful. I just wish I'd known. I wish I could have been there for you growing up."
"You didn't know," I said. "My mother made that choice. You can't blame yourself."
Thomas reluctantly handed Emma back to Tony, then gestured to the sitting area. "Please, sit. Can I get you coffee? Tea? I have cookies in the back that I made this morning because I was too nervous to do anything else."
"Coffee would be great," I said.
While Thomas went to make coffee, I looked around the bookstore. Every shelf was organized with care. Books arranged by genre, then alphabetically by author. Little handwritten notes tucked into various sections with recommendations or fun facts about the books.
"This place is amazing," I told Thomas when he returned with a tray holding three mugs and a plate of chocolate chip cookies.
"Thank you. It's been my life for forty years." He settled into a chair across from us. "I inherited it from my uncle when I was twenty-two. Never wanted to do anything else."
"Tell me about yourself," I said. "I want to know everything."
Thomas smiled. "Well, let's see. I'm sixty-two. Never remarried after Katie left. Thought about it a few times but never found the right person until I met Anne fifteen years ago. We had ten wonderful years together before the cancer took her." His expression grew sad. "Anne always wanted children, but we couldn't have them. Medical issues on both sides. We'd made peace with it, but she would have loved to know about you."
"I'm sorry you lost her," I said.
"Me too. But enough about me. Tell me about you, Lily. What do you do? Where do you live? Are you happy?"
I hesitated. Where did I even begin? Did I tell him about Alex? About the abuse and torture and murder attempts? About being poisoned and paralyzed? About Emma being kidnapped?
Tony must have seen my expression because he jumped in smoothly. "Lily runs a nonprofit foundation that helps domestic violence survivors. She's also a published author and public speaker."
"That's wonderful," Thomas said warmly. "What kind of foundation work?"
"We provide legal aid, counseling services, medical care, and transitional housing for women and children leaving abusive situations," I said carefully.
"That's important work," Thomas said. "Very needed. What inspired you to start the foundation?"
I looked at Tony helplessly. He gave me a small nod, leaving the choice to me.
"Personal experience," I said finally. "I was in an abusive marriage. It ended badly. The foundation is named after Emma because she gave me a reason to keep fighting."
Thomas's expression filled with concern. "I'm sorry you went through that. Are you safe now?"
"Yes. My ex-husband is dead."
"Good," Thomas said firmly. Then he paused. "I'm sorry, that was insensitive. But if he hurt you, then I can't feel sorry he's gone."
Something in my chest loosened. Thomas didn't need the details. Didn't need to know the full horror of what Alex had done. He just needed to know I'd survived it, and he was proud of that.
"Do you follow the news much?" Tony asked casually.
"Not really," Thomas admitted. "I had a television once but got rid of it five years ago. Too depressing. I read books and listen to music and run my shop. It's a quiet life, but I like it that way." He smiled at me. "I'm guessing I should know who you are? Have you been on the news?"
"A bit," I said. "But I'd rather you know me as just Lily. Not as what happened to me or what people say about me online."
"That sounds perfect," Thomas said. "I'd love to just know you as my daughter, if that's all right."
My throat tightened. "I'd like that."
We talked for three hours. Thomas told me about his childhood growing up in Seabrook, about inheriting the bookstore from his uncle, about meeting my mother at a reading event at the university. He told me about Anne and their life together, about her love of gardening and how she'd filled their small apartment with plants.
I told him about growing up with David Morrison, about my mother's art collection, about graduating college with an accounting degree. I left out Alex and the nightmare years, focusing instead on Emma and the foundation and my plans for the future.
Tony mostly listened, occasionally interjecting a comment or playing with Emma when she got fussy. But mostly he just let me have this moment with my biological father.
As the afternoon sun started slanting through the bookstore windows, Thomas walked us to the door.
"Would you come back?" he asked. "I know you have your life in the city, but maybe you could visit sometimes? I'd like to get to know Emma as she grows up. And I'd like to be part of your life, if you'll let me."
"I'd like that too," I said. "Maybe I could come up once a month? Bring Emma to visit?"
"That would make me happier than I can express," Thomas said. His eyes were shining. "I've missed thirty years with you, Lily. But I'd be grateful for whatever time we have from here forward."
He hugged me goodbye, holding on a little longer this time. Then he kissed the top of Emma's head gently.
"Drive safe," he said. "And call me anytime. Day or night. I'm always here."
As Tony drove us back toward the city, I watched the ocean disappear in the side mirror. My phone buzzed with messages from Pepper about the foundation, from Dr. Martinez about Emma's next appointment, from Detective Harris with updates about the investigation into Alex's other victims.
My public life waiting to swallow me whole again.
But for three hours today, I'd just been Lily. Just a daughter meeting her father for the first time. Just a mother showing off her baby. Just a person having coffee and cookies in a quiet bookstore with someone who cared about her for no reason except she was his child.
"You okay?" Tony asked.
"Yeah," I said, and I meant it. "I think I just found something I didn't know I was missing."
"What's that?"
I thought about Thomas's gentle eyes and his warm hugs and the way he'd held Emma like she was made of glass. I thought about the peaceful bookstore full of stories and the way Thomas had listened to me talk without judgment or pity.
"A safe place," I said finally. "Somewhere I can just be myself without being the survivor or the victim or the advocate. Somewhere quiet where nobody wants anything from me except to know me."
Tony smiled. "That's good. Everyone needs a place like that."
Emma made a sleepy sound from her car seat. I reached back and held her tiny hand.
I had my daughter. I had Tony and Dr. Martinez and the foundation. I had purpose and strength and a future I was building from the ashes of my past.
And now I had Thomas. A father I never knew existed who welcomed me with open arms and asked nothing except to be part of my life.
For the first time in longer than I could remember, I felt like I had a family. Not the one I was born into or the one I'd tried to create with Alex. But a real family built on choice and honesty and love. It was messy and unconventional and imperfect. But it was mine. And that made it perfect enough..