Epilogue

EPILOGUE

DAISY

"Hi, kiddo," Uncle Abe says as he takes a seat next to me on the bench in the dog park. "Your mother said I would find you here."

I smile, setting my sunglasses on my forehead to get a better look at him. "Hi. What's up?"

Lifting his arm, he wraps it around my shoulder, pulling me close. We watch my mother's dogs play with Ozzy, the new Saint Bernard puppy Lester and I adopted from the pound recently.

"I have something for you." He reaches for something in the pocket of his trousers. Handing it to me, he sighs deeply. "It's from Annie."

I frown, confused. "Annie? My birthmother?"

"Yes." He nods his head. "She asked me to wait until after graduation to give you this. She's written you a letter."

I take the envelope from him. "How did you get this letter, Uncle Abe?" I ask, but I already know the truth.

"I've never let her go," he answers, looking away at the large field that stretches before us. "She's the love of my life."

"I fucking knew it." His eyebrows crease in confusion and I roll my eyes. "Oh, come on. All those trips you took? You were always with her, weren't you?"

"You've always been too smart and perceiving for your own good," he complains, shaking his head. "I've always kept an eye on you, kiddo. You know that. What you don't know is that Annalise has always watched you, too. She wanted to wait until you were a grownup, but then she got scared. She decided you should finish school first. And when she saw one of your pieces in an art magazine a while ago, she felt like now was the time." He stands up and squeezes my cheek. "Just read it, please?"

I nod before he leaves the park and I take the letter out of the envelope.

Dear Daisy,

My beautiful daughter.

I think it's time you hear my story.

THE END