‘Grand uncle? Is that even a thing?’ Andie said, her eyebrows arched high on her forehead.

I swatted her arm. ‘Stop it. Yes, it’s a thing. But you wanna hear what the real kick in the nuts is? He said my mother was estranged from the family, so I’m not sure if he even knows how to contact her. I’m trying to set up a meeting so I can find out more, but he did tell me her name: Teresa.’

Andie rubbed my arm in support. ‘That’s really great that you’re finally getting some answers, Lizzie. I know this has been super hard for you.’

‘Yeah, thanks. I hope he’s willing to meet me. It just makes me so mad that Mom and Dad waited this long to tell me the truth. I feel like they stole a whole part of my life from me. Maybe I could have had a relationship with my bio-family all these years.’

‘Okay, I know they should have told you long ago, but let’s not get overly dramatic. You know they only kept it from you because they thought it was best.’ I gave Andie a look and exhaled loudly. ‘Okay, okay. But look at the bright side. You found a … what did you call him? A grand uncle? That’s something. What did he say? Is he nearby?’

‘He lives in Connecticut.’

‘Oh my God, that’s amazing! That’s only a two-hour drive from here.’

‘I know, right? I’ve offered to go there to make it easier for him, if he’ll agree to meet me.’

‘Ooh. If he says yes, I’ll ask Travis if we can borrow his car and I’ll go with you. Safety in numbers, baby.’

‘What about work? I told him I could come any time since my schedule is so flexible and I can pretty much work anywhere from my phone.’ Andie’s schedule was erratic, sometimes changing weekly, and she was always the first person to volunteer to cover a shift if someone called out. She was serious about her job, even if she wasn’t serious about anything else in her life. She wanted to head the radiology department one day so she said she had to start putting in the hours now to make that happen. ‘Work hard, play hard’, seemed to be her life motto.

‘I’ve got some personal days saved up. There’s no way I’m missing this and letting you go alone.’ Andie threw her arm around my shoulders. ‘Let’s open another bottle. This is cause for celebration.’