“You’re out of your mind.”
“Am I?” she shot back, turning toward me with satisfaction. “I’m giving them opportunity. What have you given them? A cramped apartment and sewing lessons? Please.”
Emma’s fingers brushed the document cautiously. “Dad… what does it say?”
I gently took the document from Emma, my hands trembling as I read the printed words out loud.
It was a contract… stating that Emma and Clara would publicly declare me an inadequate father and attribute their achievements and well-being to Lauren.
“She wants you to sign away your relationship with me,” I said quietly, my voice cracking. “In exchange for money.”
Clara’s face drained of color. “That’s disgusting.”
“That’s business,” Lauren corrected smoothly. “And this offer won’t last. Decide now.”
Emma rose slowly, her fingers finding the thick envelope of cash. She lifted it, weighing it in her hands.
“This is a lot of money.”
My chest tightened. “Emma…”
“Let me finish, Dad.” She turned toward Lauren’s direction. “This is a lot of money. Probably more than we’ve ever had in one place.”
Lauren’s smile sharpened with satisfaction.
“But here’s what’s funny,” Emma continued, her voice growing steadier. “We’ve never needed it. We’ve already had everything that truly matters.”
Clara stood beside her sister. “We’ve had a father who stayed. Who taught us. Who loved us even when things were hard.”
“Who made sure we never felt broken,” Emma added.
Lauren’s expression began to slip.
“We don’t want your money,” Clara said firmly. “We don’t want your gowns. And we don’t want YOU.”
Emma raised the envelope, tore it open, and flung the cash into the air. Bills floated down like confetti, landing around Lauren’s expensive heels.
“You can keep it,” Emma said clearly. “We’re not for sale.”
Lauren’s face twisted with fury. “You ungrateful— Do you have any idea what I’m offering you? Do you even know who I am now? I’m famous! I spent 18 years building a career, making something of myself!”
“For yourself,” I cut in. “You did it for yourself.”
“And now you want to use us to polish your image,” Clara added sharply. “We’re not props.”
“You think you’re righteous?” Lauren shouted, turning on me. “You kept them in poverty! You turned them into little seamstresses instead of giving them real opportunities! I came back to rescue them from you!”
“No,” I shot back. “You came back because your career is fading and you need a redemption storyline. Blind daughters you supposedly sacrificed? That’s perfect for publicity.”
Lauren’s face shifted from pale to flushed red. “I wanted the world to see I’m a good mother! That I’ve been working for them all these years! That I stayed away because I was building something better!”
“You stayed away because you’re selfish,” Emma said evenly. “That’s the truth.”
Clara walked to the door and opened it. “Please leave.”
Lauren stood frozen for a moment, breathing heavily, her polished persona collapsing. She looked at the money scattered across the floor, at the daughters who had rejected her, at me standing behind them.
“You’ll regret this,” she hissed.
“No,” I replied calmly. “You will.”
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