Thanks so much for all the fb! Please keep it coming, it inspires me. :)
Ashley was the first to regain her composure several seconds later. "Mr. C? Did you just say my daughter? Is this some kind of sick joke?" Spencer took the agitated brunette's hand and rubbed her thumb up and down, trying to comfort and reassure her.
"Not at all. I would never joke about something like this. You did have a baby girl a little over two years ago, right? Your name was on the original birth certificate."
"Yes, but my mother told me she was born dead. She said it would be too upsetting for me to see her so I wasn't allowed to. Of course, she wasn't going to let Aiden come to the hospital either even though he was the father, so I couldn't even tell him in person. She hated him for getting me pregnant. I think she was just worried she was going to have to put up with me that much longer." Ashley struggled to hold back tears as Spencer moved to put her arm around her. She gratefully snuggled into the embrace as she continued speaking. "She said she wasn't going to spend money to bury a 'mistake' and I didn't need to have a grave as a reminder anyway. Like I'd forget. I think she was partly afraid that the press would find out about the grave, and I do have to admit I wouldn't have wanted to see my baby's grave on every tabloid and magazine across the country." Ashley stopped to take several deep breaths in a futile attempt to regain her composure before continuing. "My dad was going through a really wild phase back then too and he wasn't much help. He was already in one magazine or another almost every week for something. She told me that since I was a minor, even though I was Sydney's mother, she got to decide what happened next. She said she donated the body to the hospital and by the time I was aware enough to know what was going on, it was too late to do anything. They'd already taken her away." Ashley began full out crying now.
Spencer rubbed her back and did the best she could to comfort her. "Aw, Ash, I'm so sorry she put you through that. I cannot believe your mother lied to you. Ok, yes I can, but that's still a crappy thing for a parent to do to their kid. I wish I'd been here back then. I would have been there to help you through it no matter what your mom said or did."
Several minutes later, Ashley got herself under control. "Thanks, Spence. I know you would have. I wish you had been too. Sorry for losing it like that, I just get so upset when I think about her. I was going to name her Sydney Rose. I had so many plans. My dad had even given me money for the nursery and a nanny while I was in school. I was going to do things right. So much different than my mom did. I loved her so much. I can't believe I never even got to see a picture of her." Ashley almost broke down again but managed to remain in control.
"You have nothing to apologize for, babe. Your mom is the one who needs to apologize. What she did was a terrible thing, but now we have a chance to make it right, don't we, Dad?" Spencer couldn't imagine going through what Ashley had, never mind going through it alone. She knew Ashley's 'mother' had been a useless form of support back then. She wanted to do anything she could to help her girlfriend make things better.
"I think so, yes. Ashley, I'm so sorry. I thought you knew about this. I didn't mean to upset you."
"I know you didn't, Mr. C. It's ok. I'm glad you told me. You said that they abused her? Is she ok? What's her name?" Ashley looked at Arthur with concern in her eyes, remembering how he had said her daughter had come under his notice.
"Yes she's fine. She just has a few bruises. Luckily we got her out before they did any other physical damage. Her name is Samantha Grace. I left the rest of the file at the office. I shouldn't even be doing this yet, but here's a picture of her." Arthur opened a folder that had been sitting on the coffee table and handed the picture that was inside it to Ashley.
She took it and looked at it for several seconds saying nothing before handing the picture to Spencer as tears started falling down her face again. "Oh man. She looks so much like my baby pictures. All that hair. She's so cute."
"There's no denying she's your daughter. She's gorgeous! I can't wait to meet her." Spencer handed the picture back to Ashley who looked up at Arthur with fear in her eyes.
"Can I please keep the picture? I wont let anyone else see it, I promise. My mom doesn't bother going through my stuff much anymore. That might imply she gives a damn about me." Her tone turned bitter toward the end, making Spencer put an arm around her, which she gratefully sunk into, soaking up the comfort of the younger girl.