Gone Before We Reached Forever

When my boyfriend, Caleb Steele, loses his family and everything he has, I walk away. After he makes a comeback, I come to see him every year. The first year, I hold my daughter, Claire Sutton, in my arms. Caleb throws fifty thousand dollars at me and tells me to stay away. The second year, I bring my late-stage cancer diagnosis, and he doesn't even look at it. Instead, he gives me a hundred thousand dollars and tells me to disappear for good. In the third and fourth years, I vanish just as he wants. Then, in the fifth year, he gets a call from Claire. "Mommy, when are you bringing me dinner? I'm hungry." Chapter 1 Kate's POV "Mommy, I'm so hungry." I watched my daughter, Claire Sutton, sneak home from the orphanage. She found my old phone, charged it, and made a call just like I used to. When I was terminally ill, I could only afford the cheapest takeout, so delivery drivers always left my orders for last. Whenever Claire was hungry, I would call the delivery driver and ask him to hurry. That was why she thought making a call would get her something to eat. Now, she did the same thing and called my emergency contact, Caleb Steele. She called many times, the dim screen lighting up her face. I tried to stop her, but my hand passed right through her. I was frustrated. It had already been three years. How did I keep forgetting that I was only a ghost? "Claire, stop calling him. He'll never answer," I said. Caleb probably still believed I left him because I wanted someone richer. "Go open the little box on the table. I left some money for you inside," I said. Most of the money I had gotten from Caleb had been put in a trust to cover Claire's living expenses once she started school. I had left a thousand dollars in the box for Claire in case there was an emergency. I didn't know if she could sense me somehow, but Claire picked up the little box. Just then, a cool, composed voice came through the phone. "Kate?" I froze. Then I realized the call had already been going for a minute. "Didn't I tell you to crawl into some hole and die?" His voice was calm and cold, just as heartless as ever. I fidgeted with my fingers. It was embarrassing to be insulted by my daughter's father right in front of her, even though neither of them knew who the other was. Caleb's tone was full of mockery. "Do you want money again? Sure. Come beg me for it." Claire stared at the phone excitedly and said in her little voice, "Mister! When are you bringing me food? I'm hungry!" There was a brief silence on the other end of the line. "Put Kate on the phone," Caleb said. "You mean Mommy?" Claire's face fell. "But she can't answer the phone." Caleb's voice grew heavier. "What happened to her?" "Mommy said she's asleep." Claire was only four and a half years old. She didn't understand what death meant yet. A scoff came through the phone. He obviously didn't buy the excuse. "Is that so? I'll see what she's up to this time." I wanted to smile, but I couldn't. What could I possibly be plotting? I couldn't even float over to scare him, no matter how much I wanted to. After the call ended, Claire curled up in the corner of the couch with a little smile. She waited quietly. But I was beside myself with worry. Caleb hated me so much. What would he do to Claire? An hour later, there was a knock at the door. My heart jolted. "Don't open the door, Claire!" But she had already opened the door. There was no food outside, only a few bodyguards in suits. After checking the place and finding no one else there, they took Claire away. "No!" I screamed. I could do nothing but watch as they carried her away. … When Caleb opened the door, he saw Claire crying her eyes out. Then he looked behind her. "Where's that woman?" he asked. Chapter 2 Kate's POV The woman Caleb was talking about was me. I lowered my eyes. To him, I wasn't even worthy of being addressed by name anymore. The bodyguard answered honestly, "When we got there, this little girl was the only one in the house." Caleb frowned, clearly unconvinced. "Search again. Kate has to be hiding nearby." The bodyguard hesitated. "Mr. Steele, it looks like no one's lived there for a long time. There's about an inch of dust on the table." Caleb scoffed. "She must've set it up on purpose to make people feel sorry for her." He looked down at Claire as if she were something strange and foreign. Claire broke free from the bodyguard and wrapped her arms around Caleb's legs. I was stunned. This was only the second time she had ever seen Caleb. Claire had no idea Caleb was the father who refused to acknowledge her, but something in their blood ties made her instinctively rely on him. Caleb looked uncomfortable when she hugged him. He tried to shake her off as if she had burned him, but he didn't actually use much force. He frowned and sneered, "Kate really is heartless, sending her bastard child to face my wrath." I waved my hands frantically. "No, that's not true! Claire isn't a bastard." She was our child, but he didn't believe that. After Claire was born, I found out she had a hereditary heart condition that ran in the Steele family, so I went to Caleb. His words from back then still rang in my ears. "Kate, do you think I'm still the same Caleb Steele I used to be? You fooled me once. Do you think I'll fall for your lies again? "You had a kid with some other man, and now you want to pin her on me? Get the hell out of here. I'll give you 20 thousand dollars. Consider it a payment to end our five years together." I said, "It's not enough." He didn't want Claire, but she needed money for treatment. Caleb gritted his teeth in anger. "I knew you were obsessed with money. Fine. I'll give you 50 thousand dollars—that's all you're worth." Our five years of love had been reduced to something with a price tag. I knew asking for the money would only make Caleb look down on me, but I didn't care. I used that money to get Claire the surgery she needed. She would grow up healthy, so it was worth it. At this moment, Caleb asked Claire coldly, "Talk. Where is your mom hiding?" Claire looked up at him through tear-filled eyes. Her eyes and features looked so much like mine. Caleb looked dazed for a moment. He stared at Claire's face for a moment, then quickly looked away. "Mommy sleeps during the day and becomes a star at night," Claire said. The moment he heard that, Caleb's expression hardened. He pulled his leg away. "So now Kate has learned to use a sob story?" Caleb asked. "She taught a four-year-old to say things like that. Isn't she ashamed?" Claire lost her grip and landed hard on her bottom. I rushed over and tried with all my strength to catch her, but I couldn't. I could only watch her fall right through me. The little box she had been clutching also fell to the floor. Claire had gone two days without eating. It took her two tries to get back up, and my heart ached. Caleb watched coldly from the side, his fists tightening for some reason. Claire hugged the little box to her chest and patted her bottom, pretending to be brave. "Mommy, it doesn't hurt." I was stunned. For a moment, I thought she could see me. Then I remembered what happened when I had been bedridden with late-stage stomach cancer. When she was two years old, she had already learned to take care of me. She would even sneak out while I was asleep to find whatever she could bring home. One day, she came home covered in cuts and bruises after fighting with a stray dog. I was so worried that I coughed up blood. Instead, she smiled and comforted me. She told me she wasn't hurt. After that, whenever she fell or got hurt, she would always say those words to the empty air. Hearing Claire say that, Caleb looked around. "Kate, come out!" The whole place was silent. I was standing right in front of him, but he couldn't see me. Caleb waited for a moment, but he didn't see me. He sneered, "What a heartless woman. She'd even use a child this young." Then he said to the bodyguards, "Tell her to get lost." With that, he went inside. The door slammed shut in Claire's face. The bodyguards exchanged glances. One of the older ones couldn't help but feel sorry for her. "Should we take the kid back to her place?" The other shook his head. "Mr. Steele said to make her leave. Let her find her own way." In the end, they left Claire alone on the side of the road. Chapter 3 Kate's POV It was already dark. The entire neighborhood was lit up, but not a single light was meant for Claire. She stood alone on the unfamiliar street, staring blankly for a while. Claire looked at the little box and asked in confusion, "Mommy, where should I go?" My heart ached so badly that I could barely breathe. All I could do was pray that the orphanage would realize she was missing soon. Claire looked up at the moon. "Mommy, can I find you if I follow the moon?" She was so hungry that she could barely walk and fell twice. Her shin hit the curb, scraping off a patch of skin as beads of blood seeped out. She bit her lip and didn't cry. She just got back up and kept walking. After roaming aimlessly for who knew how long, she stumbled upon a trash can and found half a cake someone had left unfinished. Her eyes lit up. She picked up the sour-smelling cake and eagerly brought it to her mouth. I cried as I tried to stop her. "Claire, don't eat that! It'll make you sick." She couldn't hear me, but someone suddenly knocked the cake out of her hand. Caleb had appeared out of nowhere. I hadn't even noticed him myself. He was wearing lounge clothes with a coat thrown over them, as if he had rushed out in a hurry. He looked at Claire, who was all dirty and disheveled. Then he gritted his teeth. "Kate, is this how you treat your daughter?" He practically shouted it, the veins in his neck standing out. I froze. I had known him for years, but I had never seen him lose control like this. He took Claire into a car parked nearby. She wouldn't stop crying. She no longer had any affection for him. "Why won't you let me eat? You're a bad man!" She struggled to get out, her little feet kicking against the car door with loud thuds. "Let me go! I want Mommy!" Caleb's face darkened when she kicked him. Then she tried to lick the crumbs left on her fingers. Caleb grabbed her hand and wiped her fingers clean with a wet wipe, looking grossed out. "Didn't your mom teach you not to eat things you find on the ground?" he asked. His movements were gentle and careful. When we were dating, he always took great care of me. My friend used to joke that he fussed over me like I was his kid, and he was mature and dependable. Claire, on the other hand, was as stubborn as I was. When she pushed him away, she slapped him across the face. "Leave me alone, you bad man!" I was startled and looked at Caleb in fear. He wasn't angry. Instead, he lowered his eyes, tossed the wet wipes, and turned toward the window. He refused to look at Claire, whose profile looked exactly like mine. He sneered, "You've got the same temper as your mom. Good thing you're not my kid." I smiled bitterly, thinking, "Well, sorry to disappoint you, Caleb." The little box slipped from Claire's arms, and Caleb bent down to pick it up. He glanced at the dirty wooden box and felt that it looked familiar. Without thinking, I tried to stop him. If he opened it, he would discover the truth about what happened back then. Then, he would live with guilt for the rest of his life. It would be better for him to hate me than suffer through that. But when I looked at Claire, I wanted her to grow up under her father's protection too. I was torn and nervous. Yet instead of opening it, Caleb tossed the little box back into Claire's arms. "You'll pick up anything, won't you?" For a moment, I didn't know whether to feel relieved or disappointed. Chapter 4 Kate's POV Caleb took Claire home. After she stepped inside, she huddled in the entryway, too scared to move. She looked small and helpless. Caleb looked back at her. "Come inside. Don't just stay there." Claire didn't move. She lowered her head and whispered, "I'm not going into a bad person's house." Caleb took a deep breath. Then he bent down, picked her up, and set her on the couch. "Don't move," he said. He told the housekeeper to make Claire something to eat. When he glanced at Claire's bony frame, he added, "Make it something easy to digest." The housekeeper, Tessa Smith, looked at Claire, then at Caleb. She looked like she wanted to say something but thought better of it. Caleb grew impatient. "What are you looking at?" Tessa lowered her head. "It's nothing. You and the child look… Never mind. I'll go make the food." Caleb's expression changed slightly, but he said nothing. "I don't know how that woman raised a child," he grumbled. "The kid looks starved. Good thing I didn't marry someone like Kate." I nodded. I really had been a terrible mom. I couldn't even make sure Claire had enough to eat. Tessa soon brought over a bowl of hot stew and some toast. Claire's eyes lit up when she saw the food, but she didn't eat right away. She looked around first, then picked up a piece of toast, wrapped it in a napkin, and carefully slipped it into her pocket. Caleb frowned. "What are you doing?" Claire guarded her pocket warily. "This is for Mommy." Caleb scoffed. "Your mom eats much better than you do. You don't need to worry about her." Claire shook her head and said seriously, "Mommy always says she's not hungry, but she's lying. She's hungry." My tears started falling again. She knew everything. Caleb said nothing more. He sat across from her at the table and watched as she finally began to eat. Halfway through the meal, she picked the carrots out. Without thinking, Caleb frowned and said, "Kate, don't be picky." He and I froze at the same time. Caleb realized what he had said, and his expression stiffened for a moment. Claire tilted her head. "Do you know Mommy?" Caleb didn't answer. He stood up and turned away. "I'll keep you right here where I can see you. I don't believe Kate won't come for you." With that, he went upstairs, looking almost like he was running away. Claire's eyes lit up. "Really? Mommy will come for me?" That night, Claire refused to sleep in the guest room. She insisted on sleeping on the couch. Tessa tried to coax her for a long time. "Come on, sweetheart. The bed is soft, and the couch is so hard." Claire clutched the little box and curled up in the corner of the couch, refusing to let go. Tessa had no choice but to go upstairs and talk to Caleb. Caleb sounded annoyed. "Kids are such a hassle. Leave her alone. She can sleep wherever she wants." However, he still came downstairs and tossed a blanket over Claire. … Claire slept on the couch for three days. Every morning when Caleb came downstairs, he saw her curled up into a tiny ball. At four and a half years old, she was so tiny that she was barely bigger than a throw pillow. On the third night, Caleb worked until after midnight. When he came downstairs for a glass of water, he passed through the living room. Claire was curled up on the couch, the blanket kicked off long ago. She was shivering from the cold and mumbling, "Mommy, it's cold." Caleb stood there watching her for a while. Then he bent down, picked up the blanket, and covered her with it again. His fingers accidentally brushed against her ice-cold cheek. He frowned and went to the closet for a thicker blanket. The next morning, he frowned deeply. "Your mom's too cruel to you. Doesn't she ever let you sleep in a bed?" Claire shook her head. "No. She sleeps on the couch too." Caleb didn't understand what she meant. I broke down in tears. There was only one couch in our home. When I was seriously ill, I often lost consciousness while lying on the couch. Claire thought I was asleep. She would quietly crawl into my arms and hold me. Even after she went to the orphanage, she liked staying on the couch in the reception area, as if she were still sleeping in my arms. Chapter 5 Kate's POV Caleb had been working from home lately, often staring at the front door, lost in thought. His phone sat on the table, lighting up every so often with messages from his assistant. "Mr. Steele, we checked. The apartment under Kate's name hasn't had its utilities paid in two years." "Her Social Security payments stopped three years ago, and her health insurance was canceled too." Caleb stared at the messages for a long time. Then he turned his phone face down on the table. He looked at Claire, who was also staring at the door. "Hey, what's your name?" "Claire Sutton," she answered. "Claire, your mom abandoned you too," Caleb said. Claire immediately bristled. "No way. Mommy would never leave me!" "Really? Then why hasn't she come for you after a whole week?" he asked. Claire bit her lip. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she refused to cry. Caleb started to say something, but the doorbell rang, cutting him off. He immediately got to his feet with a knowing smile. "Your mom is here." Claire hurriedly got up from the floor and looked toward the door hopefully. The door opened, and they both froze. Claire pouted. "You lied. That's not Mommy." The woman at the door was a striking young lady in a red dress. I had seen her the second time Claire and Caleb met. It was at the hospital, right after Claire had her surgery. Caleb had walked out of the gynecology department with her. The two of them looked really close. I didn't know her name. I only remembered her holding Caleb's arm and smiling sweetly. I had carried a weak Claire past them after her surgery. Caleb didn't even spare us a second glance. Now, the woman glanced at Claire crouching on the floor. She looked puzzled. "Whose kid is this?" Caleb's expression was slightly uneasy when he saw the woman, but he quickly regained his composure. He replied offhandedly, "I just picked her up." The woman's eyes widened. "You picked up a kid? Caleb, what kind of hobby is that?" Her playful, affectionate tone made it clear that she knew Caleb very well. As if she suddenly remembered something, the woman walked to the window and looked outside. Then she pointed angrily at the flower bed in the yard and asked, "Who pulled out my roses? I brought those varieties back from Nethora!" My heart ached for some reason. So they had already been living together. Even the flowers in the yard were hers. Caleb glanced at Claire, who barely reached his hips. Feeling guilty, Claire looked away and returned to the couch. She had secretly picked the flowers from the yard that day while Tessa wasn't looking. Caleb didn't seem to care. "They're just flowers. You can plant some more." The woman didn't say anything more, but she was clearly unhappy. She followed Caleb inside and had barely sat down on the couch when she covered her nose. "What's that strange smell? I've been really sensitive to scents since I got pregnant." She was pregnant? I stared in shock at her barely visible belly. My mind went blank. After watching Caleb with Claire these past few days, I had still hoped that once he found out she was his daughter, he would treat her well. But now that he was going to have a child with another woman, what would happen to Claire? Caleb noticed the strange smell in the air too and looked at Claire on the couch. He walked over, lifted Claire up, and pulled up the couch cushion. A pile of food wrapped in plastic bags was hidden underneath it. There was half a moldy bun, a loaf of bread covered in green specks, and candy that had melted into a sticky mess. Then there were seven wilted roses scattered across the floor. Chapter 6 Kate's POV Caleb and the woman stared in shock. The woman immediately gagged. Caleb's jaw tightened. "Claire, what are you doing?" Claire cried, "Don't touch my things! I saved all of this for Mommy!" She rushed forward to protect the pile, but Caleb stopped her. The woman pinched her nose and backed away. "Oh my god, it's all moldy. Just throw it out!" "No! Don't throw it away!" Claire stomped her feet. "Mommy loves flowers, and she hasn't even had cake before!" I remembered how she used to scavenge outside. Sometimes, people who felt sorry for her would buy her something to eat. She never wanted to eat it herself and always brought it home for me. After the orphanage director caught her a few times and taught her not to do it, she learned to eat some herself and save the ones she liked best. The other children didn't want to play with her because of how she smelled. Claire didn't care. All she wanted to do was save the good stuff for me. Caleb looked at her with a troubled expression. "Why did you do this?" Claire sobbed. "Mommy hasn't had any of these. You said she would come get me, so I wanted to save them for her." Caleb wanted to scoff, but he couldn't. He started to speak, but it took him a while before he got the words out. "Didn't she leave with some rich guy to live the good life? What could she possibly be missing?" Even he could hear how unconvinced he sounded. Claire shook her head. "No. Mommy always says she's not hungry." At first, I had only said that because I wanted Claire to eat more. Later, when my illness got worse, I really couldn't eat. Caleb stood rooted to the spot as he stared at the moldy food and wilted flowers. The woman tugged at his sleeve. "Caleb, are you okay?" "I'm fine." His voice was slightly hoarse. "Get Tessa to come clean this up." Claire tried to rush over again, but Caleb held her by the shoulder. "I'll buy you new ones. They'll be way better than these." Claire shook her head stubbornly. "I don't want new ones. I saved every one of these!" She sobbed so hard that she could barely catch her breath. Her little face was flushed. The woman beside Caleb suddenly pointed at something on the floor. "What is that?" Everyone looked toward the little box that had rolled under the coffee table. The box had come open when it hit the floor, spilling everything inside. The woman tilted her head. "Why is there an urn on the floor?" She meant the little wooden box that had fallen to the floor. Caleb stared at it in disbelief. "It's an urn?" No wonder he thought it looked familiar, like he had seen it somewhere before. He bent down and saw a stack of money and a letter that had fallen out of the box. The letter felt impossibly heavy. He reached for it with trembling hands, trying several times before he finally managed to pick it up. The handwriting on the envelope was unmistakable. "To my dear daughter, Claire." He opened the envelope, and his eyes welled up instantly.