When he proposed, Natalie agreed. Why not? It was a chance to escape her mother’s control. Michael’s parents had a spacious three-bedroom apartment in downtown Indianapolis – not a mansion, but decent for a young couple.
They welcomed their daughter-in-law warmly, dreaming of grandchildren. But years passed, and no children came. Her mother-in-law started giving sideways glances, hinting: “You’re dragging this out, newlyweds.” Michael couldn’t understand what was wrong either.
He was sure he was fine – healthy as an ox. He never imagined Natalie was deceiving him. One day, rummaging through a drawer, he found a pack of birth control pills. “So you don’t want kids?” he asked quietly, placing the pack on the table before his wife.
“Caught red-handed,” Natalie cursed to herself. “Hid it so long, and slipped up like this.” Yes, she didn’t want children. The very idea of motherhood weighed her down. Though she’d settled for life in Indianapolis, her dreams of something bigger never faded.
“I want a divorce,” she declared after a long talk. “A divorce and to leave this place.” By then, Natalie had saved some money – a few thousand dollars from her nurse’s salary. She barely spent on herself, seeing no point in investing in this family.
Michael silently endured her coldness, worked tirelessly, and dreamed of a future with kids. She was just biding her time. Her betrayal hit him like a thunderbolt, but what could he do? “If you want a different life, that’s your right,” he said, letting her go.
If he’d known what awaited her, he’d never have done it. In Chicago, Natalie quickly adapted. Clever and resourceful, she landed a job as a nurse in a private clinic and, within months, started a romance with a wealthy businessman – James. They met by chance at a coffee shop near the Loop.
The divorce was behind her, ties to the past cut. She couldn’t miss such an opportunity. When she learned she was pregnant, she saw her trump card. James insisted on keeping the baby, and Natalie agreed, seeing it as her shot at stability.
“I’m so happy we’re having a kid!” James beamed, proposing right after the news.
With his previous partner, James had lived just three years. He was ready to marry, but fate didn’t grant them children. He dreamed of the day he’d become a father, but the miracle never came. Natalie’s view on motherhood hadn’t changed – it burdened her – but the pregnancy was her leverage in this new life.
The delivery went remarkably smoothly. A few days later, Natalie and a sweet baby girl were discharged from a Chicago clinic. James glowed with joy, while Natalie only pretended to be happy. She suspected he wasn’t the father, but it didn’t matter to her. The important thing was she’d grabbed her golden ticket: a downtown Chicago apartment, designer clothes, the status of a successful man’s wife. She needed nothing more.
“Couldn’t you at least call?” her mother fumed over the phone when she accidentally learned Natalie was in the city. “Tell me how you’re doing!” She couldn’t accept her daughter’s behavior. The divorce from Michael was a shock to her.
“You’re a fool; where will you find another man like him?” she scolded, but her words fell on deaf ears. Natalie had no interest in sharing details of her new life. She didn’t even mention her daughter’s birth to her mother – she didn’t want her visiting or meddling.
Now she had a different world, different people. The past was behind her, and she had no intention of returning. If only she’d known how much she’d need it later. But fate had its own plans.
No one is immune to stupid accidents. Who can say for sure what tomorrow holds? Natalie was no exception. Six months after the birth, she slipped on wet pavement near her building and fell under the wheels of a car. A senseless death in front of onlookers. James buried her properly, with flowers and tears.
For a year, the little girl was his only reason to live. Losing his wife broke him – he barely got out of bed, and work slipped through his fingers. But meeting a new woman – Rachel – changed everything. She became his second wife.
This marriage turned into a true test. James dreamed of being a father again, but months passed, and Rachel didn’t conceive. Both wanted children, so they got tested. The doctors’ verdict was like a sentence: he was infertile. But how had Natalie had a daughter? It didn’t make sense.
A DNA test confirmed: there was no connection between him and the girl. Another man might have kept the child in the family – raised her as his own. But not James. His pride wouldn’t let him raise someone else’s blood.
He raged at his late wife, wishing he could look her in the eyes and ask how she could do this. But it was impossible. The girl was sent to an orphanage in suburban Chicago. Thus began Emily’s struggles.
Life didn’t spare her. She was moved three times from one orphanage to another – Joliet, Aurora, then another small town. What changed? The same gray walls and indifferent faces everywhere.
She ended up in Ohio by chance – one of the orphanages in Illinois was being reorganized, and she was transferred. The irony of fate, what else could you call it?