Chapter 6 - Two Women, One Lie
Lukas chose a quiet restaurant.
Neutral territory, he called it.
Sophia arrived first.
We pretended not to know each other.
Lukas arrived five minutes later.
He looked at us and smiled nervously.
“Thank you both for coming.”
I almost admired the confidence.
He truly believed he controlled the room.
For ten minutes, he spoke.
About responsibility.
Compassion.
The baby.
The future.
Sophia stared at her water.
I kept my hands folded.
Then Lukas said, “The most important thing is that nobody feels deceived.”
Sophia looked at me.
I looked at her.
And we both started laughing.
Lukas stopped.
“What?”
Sophia reached into her bag.
She placed her phone on the table.
His face changed.
I placed my notebook beside it.
His face changed again.
“What's going on?”
I answered in German.
Perfectly.
“I think it's time we stop pretending I don't understand.”
Lukas went white.
“What did you say?”
I repeated it.
German again.
Every syllable clear.
He stared at me.
“You speak German?”
“Yes.”
“For how long?”
“Long enough.”
His mouth opened.
I leaned forward.
“Long enough to understand every word at your parents' house.”
The blood drained from his face.
Sophia watched silently.
I continued in English.
“I heard you tell them she was pregnant.”
“Evelyn—”
“I heard your mother say you would make me raise the baby.”
“That wasn't—”
“I heard you say I had no idea.”
He looked toward Sophia.
Wrong choice.
She unlocked her phone.
“And I have your messages.”
Lukas stopped speaking.
For the first time since I had known him, he had no version of reality ready.
Sophia read one message aloud.
Then another.
I read dates from his travel records.
Sophia mentioned the money.
I described Ingrid's shopping trip.
Every exit closed.
Finally, Lukas whispered, “I can explain.”
“No,” I said. “You can confess.”
He leaned back.
People at nearby tables continued eating.
Our marriage ended quietly among strangers.
“I panicked.”
Sophia shook her head.
“For five months?”
“I didn't know how to fix it.”
“You weren't fixing anything,” I said. “You were managing us.”
He looked at me sharply.
The word had landed.
I knew Ingrid had used it.
“You talked to my mother?”
“I didn't need to.”
He understood.
I had heard more than he realized.
“What do you want?” he asked.
It was the first useful question he had asked.
“I want you out of the house.”
His eyes widened.
“Evelyn.”
“I've spoken to an attorney.”
That hit harder.
Sophia straightened.
“And you don't get to make plans for my baby without me.”
Lukas looked between us.
“This is my child too.”
“Then act like a father,” Sophia said, “not the owner of everybody in the room.”
He stood.
“This is insane.”
“No,” I said.
I looked at Sophia.
Then back at him.
“This is what happens when the people you're lying to finally speak to each other.”
He walked out.
I thought the worst was over.
It wasn't.
May you like
Because forty minutes later, Ingrid called me.
And this time, she spoke in English.
