Ryan lifted the small dusty girl gently out of the cramped drywall cavity frame.
Her body was featherlight as he wrapped his thick arms around her warm torso.
She buried her face into his neck and held onto his jacket very tightly.
Lily walked over slowly and reached out to hold her sister's tiny hand softly.
Lily: See, Daddy, I told you my sister was living in the wall space.
Ryan felt tears hot and bitter well up in his eyes right at that moment.
He stood up to full height and stepped directly toward his trembling wife Sarah.
His physical presence filled the hallway as his chest rose and fell in fury.
Ryan: How could you keep my own biological child locked away in the dark?
Sarah: You do not understand the financial nightmare we were in back then!
Ryan: Financial nightmare does not justify locking a baby behind a plaster wall!
Sarah backed up until her shoulders hit the grand wooden front door behind her.
She held her hands up in front of her chest to defend her actions.
Sarah: My wealthy mother promised me my full family inheritance if I had one child!
Ryan stopped in his tracks and stared at her with pure cold disgust inside.
He could not believe the words that were coming out of his wife's mouth.
Ryan: You traded our daughter's life for a trust fund and a mansion?
Sarah: She said a second child would divide the estate and ruin our status!
Sarah took a quick step forward to touch Ryan's arm in a desperate plea.
Sarah: I kept her safe and fed her every single night through that vent cover!
Ryan pointed his long finger directly at Sarah's face with uncompromising stern anger.
Ryan: Do not take another step toward me or these little girls ever again!
Sarah: Ryan, please do not ruin our lives by telling anyone about this secret!
Ryan: You ruined your own life the day you treated a baby like trash!
He turned away from Sarah and placed both young girls safely on the sofa.
He pulled his smartphone out of his back pocket with firm determination now.
Sarah gasped in terror as she realized what he was about to do next.
Sarah: Who are you calling on the phone right now, Ryan?
Ryan: I am calling my divorce lawyer and the child protective services immediate line.