Mark walked down the hallway toward his daughter's bedroom after finishing his morning work.
He expected to hear her playing with her toys as she usually did on quiet Saturdays.
Instead he heard a faint sound of muffled crying coming from behind the closed wooden door.
His heart immediately sank as he listened closer to the sad sound.
He pushed the door open gently so he would not startle her.
Little Lilly was sitting in the middle of her bright white bedroom.
Her curly hair fell over her face as she rested her chin on her knees.
She was sobbing intensely while holding her small arms tightly around herself.
Mark: Lilly, sweetheart, why are you crying?
Lilly raised her eyes and looked at her father with total desperation.
Her cheeks were bright red and completely soaked with wet tears.
She could barely catch her breath long enough to speak a single word.
Lilly: Daddy, I found something terrible.
Mark: What did you find, my precious girl?
Lilly reached behind her pillow with a shaking hand.
She pulled out a small piece of lined paper that was crumpled into a ball.
She held it out to her father as if it were dangerous to touch.
Lilly: Read it, please.
Mark stepped closer and took the rough piece of paper from her tiny fingers.
He sat down beside her on the edge of the soft mattress.
He smoothed out the wrinkles on his knee so he could see the writing clearly.
The handwriting belonged to his wife Sarah without a single doubt.
As his eyes read the first line, his chest felt extremely tight.
The letter told Lilly that Mark was not her real father at all.
It said that Mark was planning to send her away to a boarding school very soon.
It also claimed that Sarah was the only person who truly cared about her future.
Mark felt a wave of cold shock run through his entire body.
He knew that every single word written on that paper was an absolute lie.
He had raised Lilly from the very second she was born into this world.
He had signed her birth certificate and loved her with all his heart every single day.
Mark: Who gave this paper to you, Lilly?
Lilly: Mommy put it on my study table before she went downstairs.
Mark: Did she say anything else to you before leaving the room?
Lilly: She told me not to show it to you ever.
Mark hugged his daughter tightly against his warm chest.
He could feel her tiny body shaking from the deep fear inside her heart.
He stroked her curly hair gently to make her feel completely safe.
Mark: None of these words are true, Lilly.
Lilly: Are you really going to send me away, Daddy?
Mark: I will never ever leave you, my sweet child.
Lilly: Promise me you won't go away.
Mark: I promise you on my whole life that I will stay right here.
Mark looked back at the crumpled paper on the bed cover.
A burning anger began to grow deep inside his mind.
He could not understand why his own wife would say such cruel things to a child.
He knew there had to be a dark reason behind this awful secret letter.
He stood up slowly from the bed and squeezed Lilly's hand gently.
Mark: Stay right here in your room for a minute.
Lilly: Please don't fight with Mommy.
Mark: I am just going to protect our family.
He turned toward the open doorway with determination in his heavy steps.
He was ready to demand the truth from Sarah right then and there.