Chapter 7: The Brother Who Knew Too Much
I didn’t answer him.
Not because I didn’t have anything to say.
Because suddenly I had too much.
A thousand questions.
A thousand accusations.
A thousand memories that now felt poisoned.
Daniel’s voice came through the phone again.
“Marcus?””
I stared at Tasha.
She was standing in the middle of the living room, crying silently.
My wife.
My brother.
The two people I trusted most.
Both of them looking at me like they were waiting for the damage to finish.
“How long?””
My voice was calm.
Too calm.
Daniel went quiet.
“Marcus…”
“How long have you known?””
“I—”
“How long have you known about the baby?””
Silence.
That was enough.
I closed my eyes.
“You knew.””
“Marcus, listen to me.””
“No.””
I walked toward the window.
“You listen.””
My hand tightened around the phone.
“You knew my wife was pregnant.””
“Yes.””
“You knew she was planning to leave me.””
A pause.
“Yes.””
“And you said nothing.””
His breathing changed.
“I didn’t know how.””
I laughed.
The sound scared even me.
“You didn’t know how?””
“Marcus…”
“You found out my wife was carrying a child, you knew she was hiding things from me, and you decided silence was easier?””
“It wasn’t like that.””
“Then what was it like?””
Nothing.
I looked back at Tasha.
She was watching me.
Like she already knew what Daniel was going to say.
That bothered me.
“Did you know before Ethan?””
Daniel didn’t answer.
“Daniel.””
“Yes.””
My stomach twisted.
“Of course you did.””
“Marcus, please.””
“No.””
I shook my head.
“You don’t get to ask me for anything.””
“I made mistakes.””
“Mistakes?””
I repeated the word.
“You and my wife didn’t accidentally end up together.””
Silence.
“You didn’t accidentally hide it.””
Silence.
“You didn’t accidentally let me sit at home believing everything was normal.””
My voice broke.
“You chose this.””
Daniel exhaled.
“Yes.””
The honesty surprised me.
“I did.””
For a second, I didn’t know what to do with that.
A person admitting they destroyed your life doesn’t make it hurt less.
Sometimes it makes it worse.
“Tell me everything.””
“Marcus.””
“Tell me.””
A long pause.
Then Daniel said:
“Not over the phone.””
I laughed softly.
“Why?””
“Because you deserve to hear it face to face.””
“No.””
I looked at Tasha.
“I deserve to hear it when I’m ready.””
Daniel was quiet.
Then he said:
“I’ll come tomorrow.””
“I don’t want to see you.””
“I know.””
“Then why?””
“Because there’s something you need to know.””
My chest tightened.
“About what?””
Daniel hesitated.
And I hated that hesitation.
Because it meant there was more.
There was always more.
“About the night everything changed.””
“What night?””
“The night Tasha found out she was pregnant.””
I looked at my wife.
She looked terrified.
“Daniel.””
“I’m sorry, Marcus.””
The call ended.
For several minutes, nobody spoke.
The silence between Tasha and me felt impossible to cross.
Finally, I turned around.
“How much did he know?””
She wiped her face.
“I don’t know.””
“Don’t lie.””
“I’m not.””
“You said the same thing about Ethan.””
Her eyes closed.
“I know.””
I hated that she accepted it.
I hated that she knew she had lost the right to defend herself.
“Did Daniel know about Ethan?””
“Yes.””
The answer came immediately.
“How?””
“I told him.””
“Why?””
She looked away.
“Because he was already involved.””
My jaw tightened.
“Involved?””
She nodded.
“After it ended between us, I told him I was seeing someone else.””
I stared at her.
“So you told your affair partner’s replacement?””
Her face fell.
“Marcus…”
“No.””
I shook my head.
“I need you to understand something.””
“What?””
“I’m not angry because you fell for someone.””
She looked surprised.
“I’m angry because every person in this story knew something except me.””
The words hung there.
Because that was the deepest wound.
Not just what happened.
The isolation.
Everyone had pieces of my life.
Everyone had information about my marriage.
Everyone was making decisions.
Except me.
Tasha sat down.
“I was ashamed.””
I stood there.
“Good.””
She looked up.
The word sounded cruel.
I knew that.
But I couldn’t stop it.
“Because I was ashamed too.””
Her expression changed.
“Marcus…”
“I spent months defending you.””
“I know.””
“No.””
My voice hardened.
“You don’t.””
I pointed toward the door.
“I defended you when people asked why you were never around.””
I pointed toward the kitchen.
“I defended you when you stopped wanting to do things together.””
I looked at our wedding photo.
“I defended you when I felt alone.””
A tear rolled down my face.
“And all that time, you were the person I needed protection from.””
Tasha broke down.
“I’m sorry.””
I turned away.
“I know.””
That was the worst part.
I believed she was sorry.
But sorry didn’t rewind time.
Sorry didn’t erase messages.
Sorry didn’t remove another man’s fingerprints from my marriage.
Sorry didn’t make me forget.
I didn’t sleep.
Again.
The next morning, Daniel arrived at 9:00.
I knew it was him before he knocked.
I had spent thirty years recognizing his footsteps.
That was another cruel thing.
The people who hurt you are often the people you know best.
Tasha was in the kitchen.
She looked like she wanted to come with me.
I stopped her.
“No.””
She froze.
“Marcus…”
“This is between me and him.””
She nodded.
“I understand.””
I opened the door.
Daniel stood there.
He looked older.
Not physically.
Just tired.
His eyes were red.
He had always been the confident one.
The one who could talk his way through anything.
Not today.
“Marcus.””
I stepped aside.
“Come in.””
He walked into the house slowly.
The same house he had visited dozens of times.
The same house where he had eaten dinner.
The same house where he betrayed me.
We sat across from each other.
Neither of us spoke.
Finally, Daniel said:
“I don’t expect you to forgive me.””
“Good.””
He nodded.
“I deserve that.””
I stared at him.
“Start talking.””
He took a deep breath.
“It started after you and Tasha began having problems.””
“We didn’t have problems.””
He looked down.
“You didn’t know you did.””
That sentence bothered me.
“What does that mean?””
“She felt like you were drifting apart.””
I laughed.
“You’re going to blame me?””
“No.””
“Because it sounds like you’re about to.””
“I’m not.””
“Then explain.””
Daniel rubbed his hands together.
“She came to me because she was upset.””
“Your sister-in-law came to you.””
“Yes.””
“And you thought that was okay?””
“No.””
“Did you think that while it was happening?””
His silence answered.
I leaned back.
“When?””
Daniel swallowed.
“The first time was at a hotel.””
My stomach turned.
“A hotel?””
“Yes.””
“When?””
“Eight months ago.””
Eight months.
The same time Tasha said she started planning to leave.
The same time I thought we were just struggling.
“How many times?””
Daniel looked away.
“Daniel.””
“Four.””
I closed my eyes.
Four times.
My brother.
My wife.
Four times.
“What happened after?””
“We ended it.””
“But she was still seeing Ethan.””
“Yes.””
“And you knew.””
“Yes.””
“Why didn’t you tell me?””
Daniel looked at me.
And for the first time, I saw fear in his eyes.
“Because I thought I could fix it.””
I stared.
“You thought you could fix my marriage?””
“No.””
“Then what?””
He swallowed.
“I thought I could protect you.””
I almost smiled.
“Protect me?””
“Yes.””
“By lying?””
“No.””
“By letting me live a lie?””
He had no answer.
I stood.
“I’m done.””
Daniel looked up.
“Marcus.””
“No.””
I walked toward the door.
But before I opened it, Daniel said:
“There’s one more thing.””
I stopped.
I didn’t turn around.
“What?””
His voice shook.
“The baby.””
I closed my eyes.
“What about the baby?””
A long pause.
Then Daniel said:
“You’re right about one thing.””
I turned.
“What?””
He looked at me.
“Tasha isn’t telling you the whole truth.””
My heart sank.
“Explain.””
Daniel’s face went pale.
“Because she doesn’t know it either.””
I stared at him.
“What are you talking about?””
He looked toward the hallway where Tasha was standing.
She had heard everything.
Daniel whispered:
“The pregnancy test was never the answer.””
My chest tightened.
“Then what is?””
He reached into his pocket.
Pulled out a folded piece of paper.
And placed it on the table.
“It’s the reason I’ve been trying to tell you the truth.””
I looked down at the paper.
A hospital logo was printed at the top.
And beneath it was one sentence.
May you like
A sentence that made my entire body go numb.
*PATERNITY TEST RESULTS: INCONCLUSIVE.*