No one reacted immediately.<\/p>\n
Maybe because the sentence was too large.<\/p>\n
Their children.<\/p>\n
Grace stood very still.<\/p>\n
Leah did not.<\/p>\n
She crossed the room and slapped David so hard an officer had to step between them.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat,\u201d she said, \u201cwas for every hypothetical child you people ever planned before asking whether we wanted any.\u201d<\/p>\n
David touched his cheek.<\/p>\n
Ortiz said, \u201cLeah.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m done.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen step back.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah did.<\/p>\n
Grace remained pale.<\/p>\n
\u201cExplain.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot here.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
She shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone keeps delaying truth because the setting is inconvenient. Explain.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael looked at David.<\/p>\n
Then at the samples.<\/p>\n
\u201cHarlan\u2019s model was probably generational.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was trying to combine unstable repair variants with suppressor variants.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes. But if Daniel inherited one suppressor from Samuel and another from Evelyn\u2019s side\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace understood before he finished.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen Dad carries two separate protective factors.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPossibly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Mom carries the unstable variant.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo Leah and I inherited combinations.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Harlan wanted to see what happened if those combinations were passed again.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael nodded.<\/p>\n
Leah stared at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo children.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel looked sick.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe planned another generation before they were even born.\u201d<\/p>\n
David spoke from where officers held him.<\/p>\n
\u201cDouglas did.\u201d<\/p>\n
Everyone turned.<\/p>\n
\u201cHarlan refined it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ortiz said, \u201cYou\u2019re going to explain every part of that on record.\u201d<\/p>\n
David looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think prison changes the genetics?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut you can lock away the notes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSomeone will rediscover it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace\u2019s voice cut in.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen they can discover it ethically.\u201d<\/p>\n
David looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat could take decades.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGood.\u201d<\/p>\n
He frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cGood?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf a discovery cannot survive waiting for consent, then it does not deserve to outrun the people it affects.\u201d<\/p>\n
David stared.<\/p>\n
I saw Harlan in his expression.<\/p>\n
Not physically.<\/p>\n
The same disbelief that anyone would choose human limits over accelerated knowledge.<\/p>\n
Michael closed the refrigerator.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need an independent lab.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ortiz nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cState university medical center. Nothing stays here.\u201d<\/p>\n
David laughed softly.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou still need my notes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo,\u201d Michael said.<\/p>\n
David looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to know what happened to Grace, Leah, and Rachel.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy notes tell you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey also contaminate every interpretation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ll waste time.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRachel doesn\u2019t have time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel looked at Michael.<\/p>\n
Then David.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is my problem.\u201d<\/p>\n
David\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cExactly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her voice remained weak but sharp.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy problem.\u201d<\/p>\n
Not his.<\/p>\n
That distinction seemed to anger him more than any accusation.<\/p>\n
Police took David upstairs.<\/p>\n
I stayed beside Rachel while Michael and Grace cataloged the medical materials with investigators.<\/p>\n
Leah sat on the floor against the wall.<\/p>\n
She looked exhausted.<\/p>\n
I lowered myself beside her.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou okay?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGood answer.\u201d<\/p>\n
She glanced at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou ask stupid questions.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m new at this.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHaving daughters.\u201d<\/p>\n
Something shifted in her face.<\/p>\n
\u201cGrace got the first Dad.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat bother you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
She answered immediately.<\/p>\n
Then looked surprised by her own honesty.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t mean I want to call you that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOkay.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI might.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOkay.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cStop saying okay.\u201d<\/p>\n
I smiled.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat should I say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat seems to be the family motto.\u201d<\/p>\n
She almost laughed.<\/p>\n
Then looked toward Grace.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe gets things first.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe got Rachel first.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe met her before me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe got the Bennetts.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe got medical school.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNursing school.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhatever.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe became a nurse.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re allowed to be angry about what you lost without making what she had into something stolen from you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat sounded very parental.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m trying it out.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked away.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hated her before I met her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Elaine made her sound chosen.\u201d<\/p>\n
I knew.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe wanted twin.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you were the rejected one.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Grace.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe probably spent years wondering why her biological family never came.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah\u2019s eyes narrowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn\u2019t make us equal.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGood.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt makes you different.\u201d<\/p>\n
She stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd that\u2019s supposed to help?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why say it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause trying to make pain equal usually makes everyone lie.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah was quiet.<\/p>\n
Then she whispered, \u201cYou really didn\u2019t know about us.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI used to think you knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
I turned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho told you that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cElaine.\u201d<\/p>\n
Of course.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did she say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat you chose not to look.\u201d<\/p>\n
My jaw tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe said you wanted a life without complications.\u201d<\/p>\n
I laughed once.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat sounds like something my father would say.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe said Rachel protected you from scandal.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you believe?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat rich people make inconvenient children disappear.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe weren\u2019t rich.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t know that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cApparently neither did my creditors.\u201d<\/p>\n
She almost smiled.<\/p>\n
Then her expression broke.<\/p>\n
\u201cI spent years hating you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou had reasons based on what you were told.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI still hated you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDoes that bother you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked surprised.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy say that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause you asked.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah stared at me.<\/p>\n
Then nodded.<\/p>\n
Honesty.<\/p>\n
Small.<\/p>\n
Sharp.<\/p>\n
Better than comfort.<\/p>\n
Across the room, Grace called us.<\/p>\n
\u201cDad.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah\u2019s eyes flicked toward me.<\/p>\n
I noticed.<\/p>\n
Grace noticed too.<\/p>\n
Neither commented.<\/p>\n
Michael had placed images from the sample labels on a monitor.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have something.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSamuel\u2019s preserved cardiac tissue includes old genomic sequencing.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow did David get my father\u2019s heart tissue?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHospital retention after death.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were told there was no autopsy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere wasn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why preserve tissue?\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael looked toward where David had been.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe arranged a research draw after death.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWithout family permission.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I laughed bitterly.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat seems consistent.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace pointed toward the genetic map.<\/p>\n
\u201cSamuel carried a suppressor variant.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDifferent from mine?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRelated.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYour VQ-17S likely came partly through Samuel.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Evelyn?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need deeper sequencing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah folded her arms.<\/p>\n
\u201cTranslation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel\u2019s cells may have two different protective mechanisms.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGood?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPotentially.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor us?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPossibly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace said, \u201cOur genomes may contain mixed inheritance from both.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at the twins.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo Harlan wanted their children because recombination could produce stronger suppression.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cOr stronger instability.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel whispered, \u201cHe was gambling with grandchildren who didn\u2019t exist.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah looked at Grace.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou planning children?\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace gave her a look.<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGreat. Experiment canceled.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael did not smile.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s another problem.\u201d<\/p>\n
Of course.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf David has been monitoring reproductive material, Grace\u2019s stolen oocytes may not be the only preserved samples.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah went still.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou may have tissue stored too.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI never had surgery.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn\u2019t mean nothing was collected.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked suddenly frightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat could they take?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBlood is enough for some forms of cellular reprogramming.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace stared at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cInduced pluripotent stem cells.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah looked between them.<\/p>\n
\u201cEnglish.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCells can sometimes be reprogrammed into other cell types.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCan they make eggs?\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cExperimental systems exist.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo David could try creating reproductive cells from ordinary tissue.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn theory.\u201d<\/p>\n
She laughed bitterly.<\/p>\n
\u201cApparently my body has been more productive behind my back than I have.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel whispered, \u201cLeah.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m fine.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, you\u2019re not.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cNeither am I.\u201d<\/p>\n
That changed the air.<\/p>\n
No fixing.<\/p>\n
No false reassurance.<\/p>\n
Just two women admitting the same thing from different directions.<\/p>\n
Ortiz returned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe located additional storage.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDavid rented space under two shell companies.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cMedical storage?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOne near Mercy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. One in Wichita. One outside Kansas City.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI lived in Wichita.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ortiz nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Wichita unit contains files connected to you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat kind?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t know yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen we go.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah glared.<\/p>\n
Ortiz continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cInvestigators go.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThose are my records.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to see them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou will when they\u2019re processed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah turned toward me as if expecting backup.<\/p>\n
I said, \u201cShe\u2019s right about evidence handling.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her mouth opened.<\/p>\n
Then shut.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re terrible at this father thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cStill learning.\u201d<\/p>\n
She folded her arms.<\/p>\n
\u201cFine.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ortiz looked at Grace.<\/p>\n
\u201cKansas City storage appears connected to reproductive specimens.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace went pale.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy samples.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPossibly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael asked, \u201cWhat company name?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPinnacle Biostorage.\u201d<\/p>\n
His face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHarlan used them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYears ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat for?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEmbryos, tissue, blood.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo David didn\u2019t invent G3.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael looked at Rachel.<\/p>\n
\u201cHarlan may have begun preserving material before David took over.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel closed her eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow far back?\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael looked at Grace.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour ovarian surgery was seven years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was Harlan?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPossibly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut David was already involved then.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho signed the storage transfer?\u201d<\/p>\n
Ortiz checked her notes.<\/p>\n
\u201cDr. Sonia Patel.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace laughed softly.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Ortiz.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is Sonia now?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCustody.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTalking?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does she say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat she preserved tissue because Harlan claimed Grace had consented through research paperwork.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace\u2019s expression hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat else?\u201d<\/p>\n
Ortiz hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cSonia says Harlan had reproductive samples from Daniel.\u201d<\/p>\n
My stomach dropped.<\/p>\n
\u201cMe?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
Ortiz read.<\/p>\n
\u201cApproximately twenty-eight years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore the twins.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael understood.<\/p>\n
\u201cFertility testing.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared.<\/p>\n
Rachel whispered, \u201cDanny.\u201d<\/p>\n
Memory returned.<\/p>\n
We had been trying to conceive.<\/p>\n
No success.<\/p>\n
Rachel had suggested testing.<\/p>\n
I hated the idea.<\/p>\n
Eventually I agreed.<\/p>\n
One appointment.<\/p>\n
One sample.<\/p>\n
I never thought about it again.<\/p>\n
\u201cHarlan got it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cThrough St. Anne\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt sick.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo he had my reproductive material before Rachel\u2019s pregnancy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel looked toward the ceiling.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe could have created embryos then.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace went still.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he?\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need records.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ortiz\u2019s phone rang.<\/p>\n
She answered.<\/p>\n
Listened.<\/p>\n
Then looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Kansas City team opened the storage unit.\u201d<\/p>\n
My mouth went dry.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did they find?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCryogenic containers.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many, Ortiz?\u201d<\/p>\n
She hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cOver two hundred labeled specimens.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace whispered, \u201cFrom the study?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLikely.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat about Daniel?\u201d<\/p>\n
Ortiz looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a container under your name.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Rachel?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace\u2019s face drained.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd us?\u201d<\/p>\n
Ortiz looked at both twins.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah swore softly.<\/p>\n
Then Ortiz continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s one more label investigators want clarified.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
She read from the message.<\/p>\n
WHITMORE-SHAW EMBRYO SET A.<\/p>\n
Rachel stopped breathing for a beat.<\/p>\n
I stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cEmbryos.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ortiz nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrozen twenty-seven years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace looked between us.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is before we were born.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael went pale.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many?\u201d<\/p>\n
Ortiz checked.<\/p>\n
\u201cFour.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel grabbed my arm.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe never did IVF.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen how?\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael whispered the answer.<\/p>\n
\u201cHarlan created them without you.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room went silent.<\/p>\n
Grace and Leah stared at us.<\/p>\n
My mind refused the implication.<\/p>\n
Four embryos.<\/p>\n
Created before Rachel conceived naturally.<\/p>\n
Using material stolen from both of us.<\/p>\n
I asked the only question that mattered.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened to them?\u201d<\/p>\n
Ortiz looked at the message again.<\/p>\n
\u201cThree remain in storage.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel\u2019s hand tightened around mine.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd the fourth?\u201d<\/p>\n
Ortiz\u2019s expression changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cRemoved twenty-six years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
The year the twins were born.<\/p>\n
Leah whispered, \u201cBy who?\u201d<\/p>\n
Ortiz read the authorization.<\/p>\n
\u201cHarlan Vale.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace looked at Michael.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he do with it?\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael\u2019s face had gone white.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
But Anna did.<\/p>\n
She had entered quietly behind Ortiz.<\/p>\n
Her expression told me before she spoke.<\/p>\n
\u201cI do.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at her.<\/p>\n
Anna swallowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cHarlan implanted it.\u201d<\/p>\n
My chest tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn whom?\u201d<\/p>\n
Anna looked at Rachel.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot Rachel.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe used a surrogate.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow do you know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I found her after she gave birth.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel whispered, \u201cA child.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anna nodded.<\/p>\n
I stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur child?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace and Leah went completely still.<\/p>\n
I could barely form the question.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
Anna\u2019s eyes filled.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know where that child is now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah laughed once in disbelief.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnother sibling.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace did not move.<\/p>\n
I looked at Anna.<\/p>\n
\u201cBoy or girl?\u201d<\/p>\n
Anna swallowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cA boy.\u201d<\/p>\n
No one reacted immediately. Maybe because the sentence was too large. Their children. Grace stood very still. Leah did not. She crossed the room and slapped David so hard an … <\/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-19936","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\/19936","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=19936"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19936\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20014,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19936\/revisions\/20014"}],"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=19936"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=19936"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=19936"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}