“What, per se, would you call it?”
“He made a mistake and ended up with another child.”
“Did you know about it at the time?”
“No. The first I heard of it was when she called me.”
“What did she want when she called?”
“To find out if Mike had left anything to her son. She said she’d been waiting to hear something, and when she didn’t, she decided to reach out to me.”
“He left everything to me.”
“That’s what I figured.”
“Why didn’t he request a paternity test?”
“I wish I knew, but she said they never did that. I couldn’t believe he gave money to someone without knowing for sure.”
This is the first I’ve heard of him giving her money. “Maybe the boy looks like him.”
“I suppose that’s possible.”
“I want to talk to her.”
“You do? Why?”
“Because her son is my children’s half sibling, and Mike’s family will want to meet him. I told Rob about him today.”
“Maybe you should let them talk to her?”
“I want to talk to her. Text me her number, will you?”
“Are you sure that’s a good idea, Iris?”
“No, Steve, I’m not, but I’m going to do it anyway.”
“I’ll send it to you.”
“And I want to say this… I understand why you did what you did with the DNA and how you thought you were protecting me by confirming it before you brought it to me. But having my child’s DNA tested for anything without my consent is not okay.”
“I felt terrible about it. Jenny and I agonized over what to do,” he says, referring to his wife. “The last thing I wanted was to make this dreadful situation any worse for you than it already is.”
“I understand and appreciate that, but the minute my child’s DNA was being used in that way, I should’ve been told and asked for my consent.”
“You’re right, and I’m sorry. I truly am.”
“Apology accepted. You and Jenny have been wonderful through this nightmare. I don’t want any trouble between us, so I had to put that out there.”
“Thank you for forgiving me.”
“You’re not the one who cheated on me and had a child with another woman.”
“I was shocked to learn that. I feel like I didn’t know him at all. I always saw him as the consummate family man. I used to aspire to be more like him with my own family. And now… I just don’t know what to think.”
“Trust me, I know. I’m worried about lawsuits, from her and the families of the others on the plane. I’ve only heard from one of them since the NTSB report landed, and we’ve all stayed in close touch since the accident.”
“If the families sue, they’ll sue the company, and we have very good insurance.”