Chapter 877
877:
“Why did you follow me?” he shouted, face flushed with rage. “I don’t need your help! I don’t want you!”
A glance around the empty room told Collin everything. The bed was untouched. There were no bags, no trace of anyone else. Linsey was gone.
Just like before, she had left without a word—this time abandoning both Collin and the boy they shared.
Quiet steps brought Collin closer to the boy, his voice low as he knelt down, eye to eye with Zander’s tear-streaked but fiercely guarded face.
“You said you’d handle this by yourself,” he said softly. “But I couldn’t stay away. You’re my son, and I came to take both you and your mother home.”
Those last few words hit like thunder. Zander’s breath caught, and his eyes flew wide. “Wait… you’re saying you’re my dad?”
A calm nod followed. “Yes. That’s right. Haven’t you ever noticed how much we look alike?”
Pulling out his phone, Collin opened the photo gallery without another word. Within seconds, he swiped to a photo and turned the screen toward the boy.
“This one’s from before you were born. That’s your mom and me,” Collin continued.
Zander stared at the screen, his expression blank, as he watched Linsey and Collin together. In the photo, Linsey’s smile was bright, while Collin gazed at her with a tender expression. Even at his age, the emotion in the picture reached Zander.
He took a step back, shaking his head slowly, lips trembling. “No… you’re the man who hurt Mommy. You made her cry. You’re not my dad. You’re mean. You’re the bad man!”
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Collin did not move. The words landed hard, but he stayed still. “She cried?” he asked gently. “When?”
A beat passed before he continued, his voice lower this time. “I made a mistake… four years ago. Something I regret every day. I hurt her, and she left. I didn’t know where she went. I searched everywhere.” His fingers curled slightly as he exhaled. “I didn’t even know you existed. Or your sister. Not until today. Now I see how much your mother has been through.”
Little by little, Zander’s glare lost its edge. His bottom lip stuck out stubbornly, but his eyes no longer held the same fire. “So it was you,” he muttered, folding his arms. “That means you’re the bad guy. My sister and I—we’re not going to like you, bad dad!”
A dull pressure bloomed in Collin’s chest at the boy’s words.
In that moment, the truth became undeniable—Linsey hadn’t just had a child. She had had two.
“I’m going to do everything I can to make things right,” Collin said with calm determination. “With your mom, and with both of you. But first, we need to find them. Can you help me with that?”
Suddenly, the scope of his world had shifted. It no longer revolved around the past—it now included two lives he never knew he had helped create. And the person responsible for bringing those children into the world was the same woman who meant everything to him.
Gratitude swelled in his chest. This time, he wouldn’t let that second chance slip away. He wouldn’t lose Linsey again.
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