Huh? The photo on the right used to be a solo portrait of Mom, but now how has it turned into a picture of Mom and Uncle Jonathan together? They both look very young, in their twenties, and their poses are very intimate—they look just like a couple deeply in love.
Opening the last memento Mom left her, this letter felt as heavy as a thousand pounds, yet at the same time, it resolved all the doubts that had been weighing on her heart.
Sophie:
By the time you read this letter, I believe Mom has already left you forever. I can't bear to part with you!
Please forgive Mom's selfishness—I can't go to America with you anymore. But you must leave this place of trouble, whether it's America or some other country. You have to stay far away from here.
First, about my illness: You've all been hiding it from me, telling me it was curable, but I had already consulted Dr. William, and he told me the whole truth. I only have two years left at most, and they would be two years of great suffering. I don't want to spend the rest of my life in a hospital.
Second, more than twenty years ago, my older brother Matthew was Jonathan's driver. One time, he drove to my workplace to bring me a birthday gift, and that's how I met Jonathan. From then on, he pursued me intensely. At that time, I was just beginning to experience love and had no idea he was already married. I wanted to marry him and have children with him.
We naturally did everything that lovers do, and that period was the happiest time of my life. However, one day, a woman who claimed to be his wife suddenly came to me, saying I had destroyed her family and that I was the third party in their marriage. Only then did I realize that I had been Jonathan's mistress all along. Even my brother knew about it—everyone knew except me, who had been kept in the dark. On the day I broke up with Jonathan, I discovered that a new life had already taken root in my body.
I struggled with it and thought about not keeping him, but in the end, I couldn't bear to part with this fruit of our love. I hid it from my family and moved to Manchester, settling down with some savings I had and taking a low-paying part-time job. One time, while pouring water in the break room, I slipped heavily and fell. The baby was born prematurely—a boy, very small and weak. Did you see that photo? The baby lying on my chest is my son, and the nurse beside us is Eugenie, the midwife at the time. When I fell, my forehead was badly cut by the corner of the table, leaving a scar that greatly changed my appearance afterward.
You must be wondering—I once told you that I had an abortion, lost my own child, and then adopted you. But that's not true. This is the third thing I want to tell you.
My son was premature, and because he didn't get enough nutrition during the pregnancy, he needed to stay in an incubator for several days. But the cost was far too high—I simply couldn't afford it. The day after I gave birth, the hospital urgently admitted another pregnant woman who, I heard, had also fallen due to a fright and needed an emergency delivery. She gave birth to a baby girl.
After her delivery, Eugenie told me that the lady was extremely emotional and said she didn't want her own child, but that she wanted to adopt a newborn boy. I thought about it for a whole day and finally decided to swap my son for hers. This lady must have been very wealthy—she was in the most expensive VIP ward after giving birth, with nutritionists, postpartum caregivers, and psychologists constantly coming and going. I thought my son would have a good life with a family like that; if he stayed with me, he was destined to suffer hardship.
Eugenie took my son away and brought you to me in exchange. At the time, I didn't want you at all—I even asked her to send you to an orphanage. I secretly tried to catch a glimpse of the lady in the VIP ward, wanting to confirm what kind of person had taken my son. But I never managed to see her; only her voice sounded strangely familiar to me. Five days later, she was due to be discharged. Thinking it would be my last chance to see her, I crouched in a corner near the elevator waiting. Who would have guessed that the person who emerged was Victoria, surrounded by people as she got into the elevator and left—with my son. So the baby girl who had been swapped over was her daughter.
At that time, my mind was consumed with nothing but revenge. I wanted to use her daughter to get revenge on her. So I first asked Eugenie to send the baby girl to the orphanage, planning to go there and adopt her myself after I had settled everything.
I returned to New York for a while and lied to my brother, telling him I hadn't given birth to any child and had simply had an early abortion. I knew he would tell Jonathan. By then, I hated Jonathan with all my heart—he had whispered sweet words to deceive me into getting pregnant, yet at home he was still intimately involved with his wife.
Sophie, by the time you read this far, you should understand why I once urged you so strongly to break up with Ned, shouldn't you?
But later I silently allowed your relationship to continue, and that was because my desire for revenge was at work. I wanted revenge—I wanted to make them suffer more than I had, to watch their biological daughter and their illegitimate son, born of the same father but different mothers, commit an act of incest. I coldly observed your romance with Ned the whole time. I knew you had always been pure and self-respecting and wouldn't cross any lines, and deep down I still didn't want it to happen.
But today I received a photograph—an intimate picture of you and Ned in a hotel suite. My heart felt as though it was being torn apart; I was filled with endless regret. I knew I had been wrong, terribly wrong. I wanted to tell you the truth about your origins immediately, but I was afraid you wouldn't listen to me.
So I made one final arrangement. I was certain Victoria would come looking for me again because of this photo, so I arranged to meet Ned in three days at ten o'clock. I wanted him to forever remember that his biological mother had been driven to death by his father and his adoptive mother. And leaving this letter for you is only to tell you: stop making more mistakes. You and Ned are half-siblings sharing the same father. Back then, I deliberately swapped the two of you, and now it is also because I deliberately chose not to explain that you have kept making greater and greater mistakes. It has to stop—
Sophie, Mom is so sorry. For all these years, I have been using you, even treating you as a tool for revenge. You must hate me—I won't blame you! At the same time, I bless you to have a different life and to be happy in the future!
Sarah Wilson's final words
The letter paper fluttered lightly to the ground. Sophie felt as though she could no longer shed a single tear. She silently recalled everything mentioned in the letter: Ned and I are actually half-siblings sharing the same father. Does Ned know? His mother—that vicious, overbearing woman—is actually my biological mother? Is this God's punishment for me?
My biological mother abandoned me the moment I was born. The mother who raised me used me to carry out her revenge, treating me as a weapon for it. In the end, overwhelmed by guilt, she took her own life. And I… I was even in a romantic relationship with my own half-brother…
What on earth have I been doing? What should I do? What can I do?
Mom, why were you so cruel? Why did you leave me alone to bear all this pain?
What path should I take from now on?
The school has forced me to withdraw, and you have left me forever. I don't even have a single person I can talk to.
Should I go find my biological mother?
No, I can't. If I did that, it would be announcing to the world that Ned is an illegitimate son. He would be scorned by everyone in high society. I can't do that—it would be too selfish…
America. Yes, I can go to America. Start over there, with new studies and a new life. That's what Mom wanted me to do, isn't it?
"You little slut, you still have the nerve to show up at the hospital? You want to seduce my son again?" Victoria's furious voice echoed from afar. "Sophie Davies, Sophie Davies—get out here! Neither you nor your mother are any good. Don't think that just because your mom jumped to her death, you can be with my son. Not a chance!"
Victoria's ear-splitting curses carried from the general ward all the way to the VIP ward. When she spotted Sophie sitting on the sofa in a daze, she strode forward in her high heels and slapped her hard across the face. "That shameless mother of yours just had to jump today of all days. And you—what did you drag my son to the hospital for? I can't control my husband, but I can damn well control my son. As long as I'm alive, you will never set foot in my family! Truly the cheap spawn of a cheap woman!"
Sophie held her stinging cheek and stared at the ferocious woman before her, torn by an inner struggle. On one side was her adoptive mother, on the other her biological mother—neither of them wanted her. Her adoptive mother would rather leap to her death than go to America with her to start a new life. Her biological mother hated her to the core. Tears blurred her vision. Unable to utter a word, she slid off the sofa, crouched on the floor, and sobbed—
lamenting the unfairness of the world toward her…
Mother, I am your daughter! Why didn't you want me? What did I do wrong?
Mother, that slap hurt so much! Your words cut so deeply! I really didn't do anything!
Why are you treating me like this? Aren't you the mother who gave birth to me? Why would you treat your own daughter this way?
......