“Ill decide only after the DNA test,” Jane said, her voice low and fierce.
“I think Alice should stay with us,” Victor declared firmly, two weeks after the funeral. The little girl had been living with them ever since they formalised a temporary guardianship before her mother left the country. That stern tone from Victor somehow inflamed Jane.
“Is it because she’s your daughter?” she shouted, eyes flashing. “Admit it! I cant keep swallowing this any longer!”
“What are you swallowing, Jane?” Victor asked, bewildered.
Jane and Mary had been friends since they were babies. Their mothers had shared a cot in the same maternity ward in Leeds, and later they discovered they lived on neighbouring streets, played in the same park, and eventually went to the same nursery, school, and university. They looked alike and shared similar temperamentsMary a touch more headstrong, Jane ever the gentle soul, as her mother liked to say.
The girls hardly ever quarreled; instead they helped each other, leaned on one another in hard times.
“You’re lucky to have a friend like her,” Marys mother would sigh. “Shell be like a sister.”
“Friendships like that are priceless,” Janes mother would reply. “Make sure you keep it.”
When Paula arrived at their university, the trio didnt welcome her straight away into their little circle. Paula was tenacious, trailing them like a shadow, and eventually the three of them grew close. Without Paula, Mary and Jane spent more time together, which made Paula jealous. For a while Paula fell out of the group when Mary married and moved away, but she returned and the friendship was revived.
Jane married at twentyfive, to a promising engineer four years her senior. She and Victor wanted children; there were no medical obstacles, yet nothing happened. Three years into their marriage, Mary announcedout of the bluethat she was pregnant. She refused to name the father, though Jane suspected it was Daniel, the man Mary had been seeing for a year. He vanished after a fight with his lover.
“Oh, I can handle this on my own!” Mary declared pridefully. “Too bad my mother wont see her granddaughter, but I have enough money for the baby and a nanny.”
“Of course, Mary, well help you,” Jane said, genuinely happy for her friend.
Paula rolled her eyes, constantly reminding them that a child needs a father and that parenting was a huge responsibility. “At least your husband will be there when you have kids,” she snapped. Jane and Mary exchanged a weary smilePaula could be a bit of a nag, but what could they do?
Eventually Jane became Alices godmother. The little girl often visited Victor and Jane, and Victor delighted in looking after her. For a time the couple even forgot their own infertility woes.
Six years after Alices birth, Mary met the man of her dreamsAaron, intelligent, handsome, kind, and caring. “Only fate wont let us be together,” Mary sighed.
“Why not?” Jane asked, startled.
“He’s probably married,” Paula sneered. “Or his mother has an eagle eye and hawk claws.”
“Nothing of the sort!” Mary defended. “Aaron was married once, but they split long ago. He has no children, they barely speak. And Elizabethhis motheris the sweetest woman.”
“So what?” Paula pressed.
“Hes being posted abroad for worka crucial step for his career,” Mary said, disappointment heavy in her voice.
“Well, consider him lost!” Paula scoffed.
Jane shot Paula a scolding look and pulled a grimace. “Isnt he taking you with him?” she asked Mary.
“He is, hes begging me to go. But we cant take Alice; she needs school, and she knows no language here. Shed be lost,” Mary explained. “Aaron understands, doesnt press me, but hes hurt.”
“So youd trade your daughter for a man?” Paula taunted again.
“No,” Mary sighed, exhausted.
The next day Jane sat down with Victor, pressing the matter of adopting Alice. “We cant let Mary miss this chance,” she urged. “Alice is like family to us.”
Victor smiled, a hint of amusement in his eyes. “Got it, got it. Im not opposed. Does Mary agree?”
“I havent asked her yet,” Jane admitted, leaning into him. “But youre the best husband a woman could ask for,” she whispered, hugging him tightly.
Mary hesitated at first, but finally gave her consent. “Ill send money,” she promised Jane.
“Dont bother,” Jane waved off the offer.
They said goodbye with tears, promising daily video calls. Alice quickly adjusted, knowing she lived with her godmother while her mother would return soon.
During one of those calls, Paula dropped by, bottle of wine in hand, complaining about a new boyfriend who refused to settle down or think about children. “You treat her like a sack of potatoes, help her, and she just laughs at you,” Paula slurred, halfdrunk.
“Excuse me?” Jane frowned.
“About Mary. Shes my friend, but shes cunning, a pest.”
“Paula, either speak clearly or keep quiet,” Jane snapped.
“Fine! Marys she gave birth to Alice, thanks to your husband. So Victor doesnt mind the girl living with you. Hed never want a strangers child in his house!”
“Did you have a few drinks before you came in, or are two glasses enough to make you babble nonsense?” Jane shot back, disgusted.
“Well, I could leave right now, but that wont change the truth!” Paula declared, rising and heading for the door.
Victor, tucking Alice into bed, wondered why his friend had fled so quickly. He shrugged. “Someone needs to cut back on drinking,” he muttered. “Honestly, its clear Paula is the third wheeljealous, shortsighted. I still dont get how you became friends.”
It was the first time Victor criticised Paula, and Jane believed him, though a tiny seed of doubt sprouted. She remembered the many evenings Victor had been with Mary without her, their laughter, the way he still adored Alice.
Mary sensed Janes mood shift, but Jane kept up appearances. No concrete proof existedonly Paulas accusations. Paula, however, refused to discuss it further. “Ive told you everything! Open your eyes and youll see!”
Jane began watching Alice closely, spotting traits in the child that mirrored Victorher laugh, the way she held a spoon, her love of chocolate with nuts. It seemed the girl was a miniature version of Victors younger self.
Paranoia gnawed at Jane; she grew increasingly hostile toward the bond between her goddaughter and husband. Arguments with Victor flared over trivial matters. He, clueless, once suggested she see a doctor.
Three silent days passed. Then the horror hit: Mary and Aaron were involved in a car crash. Aaron suffered severe injuries; Mary died instantly. Jane and Victor poured fortunes and nerves into repatriating Marys body to England.
In the bleak weeks that followed, Jane forgot her suspicions, only for them to return as the ache of loss dulled. Two weeks after the funeral, Victor repeated, “I think Alice should stay with us.” The temporary guardianship was ending in a month; a decision loomed.
Victors firm tone again sparked Janes anger. “Is it because shes your child?” she shouted. “Admit it! I cant bear this any longer!”
“What am I supposed to endure, Jane?” Victor asked, bewildered. “Did you really believe that shoddy Paula? I thought you were sensible!”
“There was nothing between me and Mary, nor could there have been!” Jane snapped. “Youll have to prove it.”
“Ill decide only after a DNA test,” she warned.
Victor, genuinely wanting to clear the air, agreed to the test, which proved he was not Alices father. Shame washed over Jane; she was relieved she hadnt hurled false accusations at Mary. Yet she now had to mentally apologise to her late friend for the years of doubt.
Alice remained with them. Jane cut off contact with Paula, delivering her thoughts in a sharp farewell. Victor pretended nothing had happened. Why dredge up the past when his wife was finally expecting?
