Chapter 3

Kate's POV

It was already dark.

The entire neighborhood was lit up, but not a single light was meant for Claire.

She stood alone on the unfamiliar street, staring blankly for a while.

Claire looked at the little box and asked in confusion, "Mommy, where should I go?"

My heart ached so badly that I could barely breathe. All I could do was pray that the orphanage would realize she was missing soon.

Claire looked up at the moon. "Mommy, can I find you if I follow the moon?"

She was so hungry that she could barely walk and fell twice. Her shin hit the curb, scraping off a patch of skin as beads of blood seeped out.

She bit her lip and didn't cry. She just got back up and kept walking.

After roaming aimlessly for who knew how long, she stumbled upon a trash can and found half a cake someone had left unfinished.

Her eyes lit up. She picked up the sour-smelling cake and eagerly brought it to her mouth.

I cried as I tried to stop her. "Claire, don't eat that! It'll make you sick."

She couldn't hear me, but someone suddenly knocked the cake out of her hand.

Caleb had appeared out of nowhere. I hadn't even noticed him myself.

He was wearing lounge clothes with a coat thrown over them, as if he had rushed out in a hurry.

He looked at Claire, who was all dirty and disheveled. Then he gritted his teeth.

"Kate, is this how you treat your daughter?"

He practically shouted it, the veins in his neck standing out.

I froze. I had known him for years, but I had never seen him lose control like this.

He took Claire into a car parked nearby.

She wouldn't stop crying. She no longer had any affection for him. "Why won't you let me eat? You're a bad man!"

She struggled to get out, her little feet kicking against the car door with loud thuds. "Let me go! I want Mommy!"

Caleb's face darkened when she kicked him. Then she tried to lick the crumbs left on her fingers.

Caleb grabbed her hand and wiped her fingers clean with a wet wipe, looking grossed out.

"Didn't your mom teach you not to eat things you find on the ground?" he asked.

His movements were gentle and careful.

When we were dating, he always took great care of me. My friend used to joke that he fussed over me like I was his kid, and he was mature and dependable.

Claire, on the other hand, was as stubborn as I was.

When she pushed him away, she slapped him across the face. "Leave me alone, you bad man!"

I was startled and looked at Caleb in fear.

He wasn't angry.

Instead, he lowered his eyes, tossed the wet wipes, and turned toward the window. He refused to look at Claire, whose profile looked exactly like mine.

He sneered, "You've got the same temper as your mom. Good thing you're not my kid."

I smiled bitterly, thinking, "Well, sorry to disappoint you, Caleb."

The little box slipped from Claire's arms, and Caleb bent down to pick it up.

He glanced at the dirty wooden box and felt that it looked familiar.

Without thinking, I tried to stop him. If he opened it, he would discover the truth about what happened back then.

Then, he would live with guilt for the rest of his life. It would be better for him to hate me than suffer through that.

But when I looked at Claire, I wanted her to grow up under her father's protection too.

I was torn and nervous.

Yet instead of opening it, Caleb tossed the little box back into Claire's arms. "You'll pick up anything, won't you?"

For a moment, I didn't know whether to feel relieved or disappointed.