Part 7
The voice on the phone was unmistakable. It was rougher than it used to be, carrying a heavy weight of exhaustion and uncertainty, but it belonged to Logan.
Robert gripped the phone so tightly his knuckles turned white. He stood up from his chair, moving away from the sleeping baby as if the sound of his son's voice might somehow contaminate the peaceful room. Joanna stood up too, her heart hammering wildly against her ribs, her eyes wide with terror and confusion.
“Logan,” Robert said, his voice a cold, hard whisper. “Where are you?”
“I’m… I’m nearby, Dad,” Logan stammered. “I’m in Silver Ridge. I’ve been here for a while. I’ve been working at an automotive shop. Look, Dad, I know it’s been five years. I know I walked out and said horrible things. But things have been really bad lately. I’m broke, I’m tired, and I just… I couldn’t keep running from my past anymore. I wanted to see if you were still alive. If you’d even talk to me.”
Robert let out a sharp, bitter laugh that cut through the silence of the room. It was a sound filled with rage and deep disappointment.
“You’re tired, Logan? You’re broke?” Robert’s voice shook with an anger he had kept suppressed for months. “You have no idea what real hardship is. You ran away from your family because of your pride, and then you ran away from your responsibilities like a coward.”
There was a long silence on the other end of the line. “What do you mean, Dad? What responsibilities? I’ve been living alone.”
“Don’t play stupid with me!” Robert hissed, his professional restraint completely snapping. “Mercy Creek Medical. Does that name ring a bell? Three months ago, a young woman walked into my hospital completely alone. She spent twelve hours in labor with no one to hold her hand because the father of her child packed his bags and abandoned her in the middle of the night.”
A sharp gasp echoed through the phone line. “Joanna?” Logan’s voice dropped to a terrified whisper. “She… she had the baby? She was actually pregnant?”
“You knew!” Robert accused, his voice rising before he caught himself and lowered it, glancing at the sleeping Oliver. “You knew she was pregnant, and you left her with nothing. You left her to work double shifts at a diner just to survive. She gave birth to your son, Logan. My grandson. And by some miracle of God, I was the doctor on duty that day.”
The line went completely dead on Logan’s end for several seconds. When he finally spoke, he was crying openly. “A boy? I have a son? Oh my god... Dad, I swear, I didn’t think she was actually pregnant. We had an argument, she said she might be, and I panicked. I thought she was just trying to trap me because things were getting hard. I didn't know… I swear I didn't know.”
“Your ignorance doesn’t excuse your cruelty,” Robert said coldly. “Don’t call this number again.”
“Dad, please! Wait!” Logan pleaded desperately. “Give me the address. Let me see her. Let me see my son. Please, Dad, don't do this to me.”
Robert looked over at Joanna. She was trembling, tears streaming down her face, her hands clutching her stomach as if reliving the trauma of the night he left. She slowly shook her head, her eyes begging Robert not to let him come.
May you like
“No,” Robert said firmly into the phone. “You forfeited your right to be a father the night you walked out that door. Goodbye, Logan.”
Robert ended the call and threw the phone onto the sofa. He immediately walked over to Joanna, wrapping his strong arms around her as she broke down into violent, silent sobs.
