Chapter 293: Told her
Margaret’s steps echoed against the cracked pavement as she walked back towards the car parked in the shadows. The street was quiet, the only sound being the distant hum of city life, muffled by the thick night air. She clutched her coat tighter around her, the cold biting through the thin fabric, a stark reminder of the world she had been absent from for too long. The drugs had taken months to fully clear from her system, but the damage they’d done to her mind and body was evident in every pained movement, every hallucination that still sometimes flickered at the edge of her vision.
As she approached the car, the figure inside remained still, watching her every move. She knew he’d been there the whole time, his eyes never leaving her, or their daughter. Dominic had always been the shadow, the presence she could never fully escape, even after all these years. He had been the one to rescue her from that hellhole of a hospital, the one to bring her back from the brink of madness. But even now, with the drugs mostly out of her system, the madness still lingered, a dark, gnawing beast in the back of her mind.
Dominic’s face was tense as she opened the door and slid into the passenger seat. He looked older than she remembered, his once sharp features softened by time and guilt. But his eyes were still the same—piercing, haunted, and full of a desperation she knew all too well.
"How did it go?" Dominic asked, his voice low, barely above a whisper. The anxiety in his tone was unmistakable. He had been waiting for this moment for years, watching from the shadows as their daughter grew up without him. He had been too ashamed to approach her, too afraid she’d reject him for what he was—a former drug addict and an ex-convict.
Margaret nodded slowly, her movements deliberate as she turned to face him. "I met her," she replied, her voice hoarse, as though the words themselves were painful to utter.
Dominic’s eyes widened in surprise. "You did?" he asked, his tone a mix of disbelief and hope. "How did she take it?"
Margaret shook her head, a sigh escaping her lips as she leaned back against the seat. "Not well," she admitted. "She was shocked, confused. I could see the pain in her eyes. But she listened. That’s more than I expected."
Dominic remained silent, his mind racing with the possibilities. He had always dreamed of this moment, of reuniting with his daughter, but he had never expected it to happen like this. His heart ached at the thought of her hurt and confusion, but there was also a small, flickering hope that maybe, just maybe, she would come to accept him in time.
Margaret glanced at him, noting the way his hands gripped the steering wheel, his knuckles white. "I told her about you," she added, her voice softening.