Gemotions

The lawyer’s sterile office seemed to shrink with every word. Amelia gripped her purse so hard her knuckles ached. This woman, who vaguely resembled her, yet was utterly unknown, was the product of a secret her father had guarded zealously. A secret that had apparently produced another daughter. Disbelief warred with a simmering fury she couldn't quite articulate.

Her voice, when she finally spoke, was tight. "And he... just never mentioned her?" The lawyer, a man with a perpetually apologetic expression, just shrugged.

Amelia stood abruptly, the chair scraping against the polished floor. She felt a heat prickle beneath her skin. "I need to... go." The words felt inadequate, hollow. She wanted to scream, to shatter something. The world tilted slightly as she pushed past the lawyer and out into the bright sunshine, which felt offensively cheerful.