“I did not get this from anywhere; I have this because it is the only image I have with you before you up,” Valerie said, taking up the picture that Ophelia forced out of Cade’s hand and dropping it to the table.
“Then that means you do not mind doing a maternity test?” Ophelia asked, crossing her hand over her chest.
“Of course, what do you want from me? I would give it to you immediately,” she said, going for her hair.
“Give it here,” Ophelia stretched her hand, ready to take the hair from her. Cade was shocked at her reaction and held Ophelia’s hand before she could take the hair. “Don’t you want to know if she is really telling the truth?”
“Let us get a bag for that,” Cade said, walking to the door and speaking to an officer he met outside. The man brought the bag, and they put the hair inside.
“Before going on and on talking about whether you ate his mom or not, I think we should have proof, and this would be our proof, so until we have this result, you should reach out to us,” Ophelia said as Cade sealed the bag.
“So when do I reach out?” Valerie asked, blinking rapidly.
“In three days and this time, do not act like a creepy stalker from the shadows and send a message with your real line; we will let you know if it is ready, and then we can set up a meeting to talk about the results.” Ophelia did not believe anything yet. She would only believe when she saw the results come back with results that supported her claim; until then she was telling lies.
“So we would leave now,” Cade finally said, facing his mother.
“You are going already?” she said. It was obvious she was hesitating; she wanted to say more, but it would be impossible for her to see the way Ophelia was acting. She pressed her lips and nodded. “I guess we will see each other in three days,” she said and watched them walk out of the room.
“What are you going to do with that?” Ophelia asked as Cade clutched onto the bag tightly as if his life depended on it.
“Throw it out,” Cade said as he squared his jaw.
“Are you not curious?” she asked in a slow, silent voice. Cade quickly glanced at her with a worried expression.
“Were you not in there questioning everything about her?” Cade was confused. He wondered if she changed as soon as she got out of the door.
“I was, but I would give the world to meet my mom again.” She took a deep breath and put on a fake smile. “I think you should take the test; it would not hurt to know if she was telling the truth,” she urged. Cade had been lonely all his life; it would be a good thing if he had a family who would truly care about him for a change.
“I will get it across to a DNA clinic, but I doubt the results would come out with a ninety-nine per cent chance. She might be someone who just knows the story and wants to take advantage of that.”
“Or she could be your mom who wants a chance at reconciliation,” Ophelia said. They were at the front of the station, and she turned to him with a warning expression on her face. “However, that does not change the crime, and you should definitely get the highest sentence for this case for her,” she added.
Cade chuckled and turned to her so they were eye to eye now. “You know, you should pick one side; you cannot support both of us.” He said, and she shook her head.
“I am not picking sides; the right thing should be done,” she said, seeing the sad expression on his face. He wanted her to say that she picked his side; it was obvious from the expression on his face. “But if I were to pick a side, I’d definitely go with you,” she added to make him feel better.
“I have been meaning to ask,” he pointed to her hair. “What is all this?”
“Oh my gosh, I was getting my hair and nails done in preparation for tomorrow, and then I got a call from my fad that you came here, so I hurried on without taking any of this off.” She patted her head with a nervous chuckle. “My hair must be in a messed up state by now,” she added, adding that she might have to shave up her hair for leaving the dye on for too long.
“Oh,” he said, and she nodded.
“I better get back to the salon. You can go over to give the doctor the hair, and I will take a cab to the salon; I forgot my car there,” she explained.
“You came here in a cab?”
“Yeah,” she was shy at her decision. She was always more coordinated about this, but she did not know why she had been there in such a frenzy. She made a big deal out of what was nothing at the end of the day.
“I will drive you there.”
“What?”
“You came here in a rush without your car because of me, so I would drive you back to the hospital before going to see the doctor,” he said with a firm tone, meaning he did not want to get argued with.
“They are probably in separate directions, and if you take me all the way there, you might get there late and not get to drop them off,” she said, shaking her head vigorously to refuse his offer.
“I insist,” he said, holding her hand and pulling her out of the car. “And I cannot allow you to be seen in public like that twice in a day,” he added, and she rolled her eyes. He had a good point; she had embarrassed herself enough to last a lifetime; she should not do it again.
“I guess you made a strong point, but you must get that to the centre today.”