The air left his lungs.
“Mr. Cross…” Lila’s voice trembled. “Are you okay?”
He looked up.
There was no surprise in her eyes.
Only fear.
“Who are they?” he whispered hoarsely.
She instinctively gathered the three children close.
“I can explain.”
“WHO ARE THEY?” he roared.
The toddlers burst into tears.
“That boy has my wife’s birthmark,” he said, pointing with a shaking hand. “That one has my family’s hair pattern. And she— she has my grandmother’s eyes. Tell me how that’s possible.”
Thunder cracked overhead. Rain began to fall.
“It’s not what you think.”
“Then what is it? Did you adopt them? Kidnap them? What kind of—”
“They’re yours!”
The world went silent.
Even the children stopped crying.
“What did you say?” Nathaniel breathed.
Rain mixed with tears streaming down Lila’s face.
“Liam. Noah. Ava. They were born September fifteenth. They’re eighteen months old. They are your children, Nathaniel. The children Elena wanted you to have.”
His knees gave out. He collapsed onto the wet grass.
“No… the accident… there were no survivors…”
“Because Elena was never pregnant,” Lila said firmly. “I was. I was her surrogate.”
The storm raged around them.