{"id":19920,"date":"2026-09-25T14:03:03","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T14:03:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/?p=19920"},"modified":"2026-09-25T14:03:03","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T14:03:03","slug":"part-6-the-dna-match-exposed-a-son-daniel-never-knew-while-elaine-claimed-his-father-had-been-selling-newborns-for-years","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/?p=19920","title":{"rendered":"PART 6 \u2013 The DNA Match Exposed a Son Daniel Never Knew, While Elaine Claimed His Father Had Been Selling Newborns for Years"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The word Dad stayed with me longer than the word son.<\/p>\n<p>Grace had said it without ceremony, almost by accident, because there had been no other word available.<\/p>\n<p>I looked at her.<\/p>\n<p>She seemed embarrassed by it now.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou called me Dad.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A faint flush touched her face.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDon\u2019t be.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She looked down.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMaybe I shouldn\u2019t have yet.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou can call me Daniel if you want.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat feels strange too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEverything feels strange.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That earned the smallest smile.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel watched us from the bed, tears running silently down her cheeks.<\/p>\n<p>Then I looked again at the report.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho is the match?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grace shook her head.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe database only shows a coded identifier until law enforcement requests access.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOrtiz can request it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe already did.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow long?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe said soon.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I hated that word now.<\/p>\n<p>Soon.<\/p>\n<p>Later.<\/p>\n<p>When Rachel wakes.<\/p>\n<p>When records arrive.<\/p>\n<p>My entire life seemed trapped behind delays.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel whispered, \u201cDanny.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I turned.<\/p>\n<p>She had gone pale.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou know something.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou reacted before Grace finished.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel shook her head.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know who he is.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She looked toward the door.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere was something my mother told me once.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYears after the delivery. Long before the cancer.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I sat.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe said your father had another family.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I frowned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy father was married to my mother for forty-three years.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnother family where?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe didn\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy would your mother know something like that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe overheard him and Vale arguing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My chest tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAbout a year before the twins were born.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did they say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe only caught pieces. Something about a boy and payments.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy did she tell you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel\u2019s eyes lowered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe didn\u2019t mean to.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I waited.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe was drinking. It was after my mother died.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo for twenty years you knew my father might have another child.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo. I thought she meant an affair.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd you never told me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI didn\u2019t think it mattered.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I almost snapped at her.<\/p>\n<p>Then stopped.<\/p>\n<p>The scale of concealed information had become so large that rage no longer helped distinguish intent from damage.<\/p>\n<p>The door opened.<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz entered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cElaine is asking to speak with you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMe?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou and Rachel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel shook her head.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t want her in here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe isn\u2019t coming in here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe says she\u2019ll only talk if you\u2019re present.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAbout what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour father.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I glanced at Rachel.<\/p>\n<p>Then Grace.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ll go.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grace said, \u201cI\u2019m coming.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz shook her head.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe\u2019s involved.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe\u2019s also a witness.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grace\u2019s jaw tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m not a child.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo one said you were.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI spent twenty-six years being treated like someone else should decide what I\u2019m allowed to know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz paused.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat sounds familiar around here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grace folded her arms.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m coming.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>I did not answer for her.<\/p>\n<p>Finally Ortiz said, \u201cYou can observe through the interview-room window.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grace nodded.<\/p>\n<p>It was enough.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine sat behind a metal table in a small security office one floor below.<\/p>\n<p>Without her usual careful clothes and controlled posture, she looked older. Her hair had fallen loose. Red marks circled one wrist where a plastic restraint had been removed.<\/p>\n<p>The moment I entered, she stood.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow is Rachel?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAlive.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine closed her eyes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI wasn\u2019t trying to hurt her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s difficult to believe when you\u2019re found with a syringe in her IV.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was saline.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz sat across from her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen why not ask a nurse to administer it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause I needed the line.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo remove something.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My stomach turned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFrom her bloodstream?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen explain.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She shook her head.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou won\u2019t believe me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTry.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine looked toward the one-way glass.<\/p>\n<p>She knew Grace was there.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVale used a tracer.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz leaned forward.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat kind of tracer?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know the technical name.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen how do you know it exists?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause he used one on Leah.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My jaw tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen she was a baby.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat makes no sense.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt wasn\u2019t medical.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz\u2019s expression sharpened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat was it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine rubbed her hands together.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA marker. Something in blood samples so he could identify children later.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I stared at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re talking about newborn trafficking.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The word sat heavily in the room.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow long?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBefore Rachel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow many babies?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou expect us to believe you were involved and never counted?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI wasn\u2019t involved at first.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAt first.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine\u2019s mouth tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI worked reception at Vale\u2019s clinic.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel had never told me that.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFrom nineteen to twenty-three.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe year the twins were born.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI had already quit.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI found out what he was doing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz spoke.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDescribe it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine stared at the table.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVale targeted women who were poor, isolated, unmarried, undocumented, addicted, or simply frightened. He convinced some they couldn\u2019t raise a child. Others were told babies were stillborn.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My hands curled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd the children?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPrivate adoptions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor money.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy father?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe found women.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel had been right.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThrough his towing business.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy father owned a repair garage.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe also repossessed cars. He met people in trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I remembered that side of the business.<\/p>\n<p>Late-night calls.<\/p>\n<p>Cash envelopes.<\/p>\n<p>My father telling me not to ask questions about certain vehicles.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re saying he recruited pregnant women for Vale.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDebt at first.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat debt?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGambling.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I almost laughed.<\/p>\n<p>My father had lectured me about saving money until the day he died.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine saw the disbelief.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe hid it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cApparently everyone did.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe lost more than the farm was worth.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd Vale paid it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe refinanced the debt through people who worked with him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat people?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019ve had twenty-six years to know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI spent those years hiding from them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I leaned across the table.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWith my daughter.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine flinched.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI saved her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou stole her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou let Rachel think both babies were dead.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI had no choice.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is always a choice.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou weren\u2019t there.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNeither were you supposed to be.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine stood.<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz immediately told her to sit.<\/p>\n<p>She did.<\/p>\n<p>Her eyes burned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVale had two families lined up. The Bennetts for the first girl. Another couple for the second.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLeah.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe second couple backed out when they heard one twin had respiratory problems.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut that was Grace.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVale didn\u2019t care. He had already mixed the records.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe switched them?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPotentially. He treated them as inventory.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The word made my stomach turn.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRachel woke briefly. She heard one baby crying. Vale realized she might remember.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe increased her sedation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI confronted him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause I knew those were my sister\u2019s daughters.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou knew before labor?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou helped her hide the pregnancy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFrom me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I forced myself to stay seated.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat happened next?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVale told me one child was already legally placed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLegally?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine gave a bitter laugh.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOn paper.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd the other?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe told me to leave.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut you didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow did you get Leah?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI took her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWalked out of the clinic with a newborn?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe was dealing with Rachel hemorrhaging and Grace being transferred.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTransferred to the Bennetts?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe wasn\u2019t even discharged.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The horror of it settled deeper.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did you do with Leah?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTook her to a motel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd then?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCalled your father.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My chest tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy father knew?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe came.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe told me to bring Leah back.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The room went silent.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI refused.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did he do?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe threatened to call the police and say I kidnapped her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou had.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine\u2019s eyes hardened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI kidnapped her from a man who intended to sell her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That stopped me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI told him if he called police, I would tell them everything I knew about Vale.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid he back down?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat changed?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour mother arrived.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I stared at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy mother knew too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe knew enough.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did she do?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe gave me cash.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My throat tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTwenty thousand dollars.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Twenty-six years ago, that was enough to disappear.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe told me to take Leah and never contact you or Rachel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy would she do that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause she was afraid your father would have Leah placed with someone else.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat doesn\u2019t explain why she let Grace go.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine looked away.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe thought Grace was already gone.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo the Bennetts.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd she accepted that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe said one child was safe.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I heard Leah\u2019s accusation again.<\/p>\n<p>Which baby to save.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe everyone had been forced into choices someone else created.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did you tell Rachel?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat both babies died.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou watched your sister mourn children who were alive.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause your father was outside the clinic when she woke.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I became still.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe threatened Rachel?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe didn\u2019t have to. He told me if she knew, you would know. If you knew, you would come after Vale. If that happened, he said people would get hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat people?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I laughed quietly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo everyone ruined my life to protect me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine\u2019s eyes filled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was twenty-three.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd for the next twenty-six years?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She had no answer.<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz stepped in.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat about the syringe?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine exhaled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThree days ago, Vale contacted me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My head snapped up.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019s alive?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe contacted you how?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBurner phone.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did he want?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRachel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe knows she found Grace and Leah.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAfter four years?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe knew before. But now Rachel was talking.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo whom?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine looked toward the glass.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGrace.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I thought of Grace working in the hospital.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou believe Vale had access to Rachel here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen what were you removing from the IV?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine rubbed her forehead.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVale told me if I didn\u2019t cooperate, Rachel would die before morning.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My jaw tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd you trusted him?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said her IV line had been contaminated with something that would make her condition look like complications from chemotherapy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz\u2019s posture changed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat substance?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe wouldn\u2019t say.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd you tried to flush it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy not tell staff?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause Vale said someone on staff works for him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Silence.<\/p>\n<p>I looked toward the one-way glass.<\/p>\n<p>Grace.<\/p>\n<p>Oncology nurse.<\/p>\n<p>Access to Rachel.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine saw my expression.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot Grace.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow do you know?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen don\u2019t tell me what you know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz\u2019s phone buzzed.<\/p>\n<p>She glanced down.<\/p>\n<p>Her eyes narrowed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe database released the identity of your male DNA match.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I stood.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz turned the screen toward me.<\/p>\n<p>Name: Michael Vale.<\/p>\n<p>Age: thirty-one.<\/p>\n<p>Registered physician.<\/p>\n<p>My eyes locked on the surname.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVale.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine went white.<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz watched her reaction.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou know him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine whispered, \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho is Michael Vale?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine shook her head.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI thought he was dead.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My heart started pounding.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho is he?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>When she answered, her voice was barely audible.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour father\u2019s son.\u201d<\/p>\n<hr>\n<h2><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/?p=19921\">Click here to continue reading: PART 7: Daniel Found the Brother His Father Hid, Only to Learn Michael Vale Had Been Working Inside Rachel\u2019s Hospital<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The word Dad stayed with me longer than the word son. Grace had said it without ceremony, almost by accident, because there had been no other word available. I looked &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":19914,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19920","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-insightdrama"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19920","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=19920"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19920\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19998,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19920\/revisions\/19998"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/19914"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=19920"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=19920"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=19920"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}