The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 772

Chapter 772

Back then, Irene was indeed getting married.

Just not to Arthur.

Her family went through hell that year, and his work kept him away when she needed him.

Arthur felt terrible about letting her down. He wanted to make it up to her and hoped they could still work things

out.

Through her tears, Irene reminded him that he wasn’t there when her family fell apart, when she found out she was pregnant, or when she lost the baby.

Now, she was marrying someone else, and she wanted him to stay away.

That was the first he heard about the baby or the miscarriage. He didn’t know what to say.

Then she handed him the ultrasound and the records from the procedure.

Still struggling to believe her, Arthur went to the hospital to check her story. There, he saw Ben with her at a prenatal appointment. They looked happy together, and with their similar backgrounds, they seemed like a good

match.

He told himself she was better off with someone else. He couldn’t give her the life she wanted.

So he let her go and wished her well.

More than 20 years later, Irene called with a different story. She said she married Ben to save her family’s business. She claimed she never lost their baby and gave birth without telling Arthur. 1

According to Irene, she told the Clarks after the wedding. They accepted the child and raised her as their own.

Arthur stayed single all those years. He met women he could see a future with, but his career left little room for a family. He didn’t want to put anyone else through that.

Still, whenever he saw kids laughing and getting into mischief, he thought about the child he never got to meet.

If he hadn’t left on that mission, he and Irene might have married and had their baby. He could’ve been a dad.

He still blamed himself for letting Irene down. He kept her waiting, then wasn’t there when she needed him.

When he got the chance to help her, he hoped taking care of her would make up for some of the hurt he caused.

Even Arthur wasn’t sure whether he was doing it for her or to ease his own guilt.

He couldn’t stop thinking about the baby. Night after night, he dreamed of a little kid crying and calling him Dad.

His doctors said he was fixating on the loss and needed to stop being so hard on himself, but neither medication nor relaxation exercises helped him let go.

When Irene told him their child was alive, he knew better than to take her word for it. Still, after more than 20 years of those dreams, he couldn’t dismiss the possibility.

1/3

+15 Bonus

He let himself believe that she might be telling the truth.

But Irene lied. The girl she brought to him wasn’t his daughter.

So much had changed over the years. Irene wasn’t the woman he remembered.

Still, Irene came all that way to find him, and their whirlwind romance was long behind him. Arthur let the lie stand, figuring he owed her that much, but he never stopped mourning the child he thought he lost.

Then he met Nicole.

She looked so much like Irene at that age, and she was from Westbridge, too.

The resemblance alone might have meant nothing. Together, however, those details were enough to make him wonder.

Arthur arranged a sparring assessment so he could get a strand of Nicole’s hair as soon as possible.

“If you didn’t want her, why did you have her?” Arthur asked.

After more than 30 years in the military, he knew how to keep his emotions in check. His voice stayed steady.

“Why leave her at an orphanage? Why didn’t you let me raise her?”

P

ENJOYING THE BOOK?

Give it a rating to show your support!

Comments

Support

Share

2/3