Cedric sat in his office the next day, studying the letters Dave, Mae, and Mien had brought him. Some were already yellowed with age, and dated from over 30 years ago.
"Some of these letters are older than the three of you." Cedric said as he picked one up and unfolded it.
It was a letter from Fernando to his wife, telling her about his arrival in Italy.
"Mom said she started keeping them from the moment Fern- no dad left the country." Mae told Cedric.
Cedric could see how much of a struggle it actually was for Mae to adjust to calling Fernando her father. It was a much more difficult transition from calling Marisa her mother.
He suspected that this was because of the fact that Mae had know Fernando before learning that they were father and daughter.
"Your dad seemed to have loved your mom very much." Cedric said as he read through the letter. "And based on this he really didn't want to leave her."