By sunrise, I knew more about Rachel Donovan than I had known about some executives who worked for me for a decade.<\/p>\n
Thirty-six.<\/p>\n
Former embryology technician.<\/p>\n
No criminal record.<\/p>\n
No marriage record.<\/p>\n
One child.<\/p>\n
Ethan Donovan.<\/p>\n
She had left Chicago shortly after Ethan\u2019s birth.<\/p>\n
Moved twice.<\/p>\n
Wisconsin first.<\/p>\n
Minnesota briefly.<\/p>\n
Then back to Wisconsin.<\/p>\n
The monthly Northline transfers began six weeks after the child was born.<\/p>\n
Eight thousand dollars.<\/p>\n
Every month.<\/p>\n
Never missed.<\/p>\n
I sat in Clara\u2019s room with coffee I had forgotten to drink.<\/p>\n
She slept for forty minutes before waking abruptly.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnything?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRachel\u2019s address is current.\u201d<\/p>\n
She sat up.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid they go?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNina\u2019s people are coordinating with local authorities.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIs Ethan there?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUnknown.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPhoto?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing reliable.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou haven\u2019t slept.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNeither have you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI gave birth.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou win.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously.\u201d<\/p>\n
My phone rang.<\/p>\n
Nina.<\/p>\n
I answered before the first ring finished.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe found Rachel.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEthan?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith her.\u201d<\/p>\n
My eyes closed.<\/p>\n
\u201cSafe?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAppears to be.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara gripped my arm.<\/p>\n
\u201cDoes she know why you\u2019re there?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe does now.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe wants a lawyer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s reasonable.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe also says she has been waiting for this.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor you.\u201d<\/p>\n
The words landed strangely.<\/p>\n
\u201cMe personally?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe says Julian promised that if anything happened to him, you would eventually be told.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at the window.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn\u2019t sound like Julian.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRachel says you do not know Julian as well as you think.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat has become painfully obvious.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCan I speak to her?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe agreed to a video call once counsel arrives.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSoon.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked toward the NICU hallway.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want Clara present.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nina said nothing.<\/p>\n
Clara answered for herself.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m present.\u201d<\/p>\n
Twenty-eight minutes later, Rachel appeared on Nina\u2019s secure video link.<\/p>\n
She looked nothing like the villain my exhausted mind had constructed.<\/p>\n
Brown hair.<\/p>\n
No makeup.<\/p>\n
Sweatshirt.<\/p>\n
A kitchen behind her.<\/p>\n
A child\u2019s drawing taped crookedly to a refrigerator.<\/p>\n
Her attorney sat beside her.<\/p>\n
Nina appeared in another window.<\/p>\n
I could not see Ethan.<\/p>\n
I was grateful.<\/p>\n
I was terrified.<\/p>\n
Rachel studied my face.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou look like him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEthan.\u201d<\/p>\n
My throat tightened.<\/p>\n
Clara\u2019s fingers closed around mine.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is he?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith my sister upstairs.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIs he safe?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDoes he know about me?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel\u2019s expression changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe knows there is a man named Liam.\u201d<\/p>\n
I had to look away.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does he think I am?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA friend of Uncle Julian.\u201d<\/p>\n
Uncle Julian.<\/p>\n
The words were almost unbearable.<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian sees him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot for eleven months.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery few months.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe visited?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo make sure Ethan was okay.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nothing about that fit the simple monster I had built.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Ethan know he was his uncle?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why call him Uncle Julian?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause that\u2019s what Julian asked me to use.\u201d<\/p>\n
I almost laughed.<\/p>\n
Even his lie had contained truth.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow was Ethan conceived?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel\u2019s attorney touched her arm.<\/p>\n
She nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m answering.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then she looked directly at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot the way you\u2019re probably imagining.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat would be helpful.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI worked at Halpern Reproductive Medicine.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYour sample was stored after fertility testing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWithout my permission.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOriginally, I believed the extension was authorized.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBy me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt wasn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know that now.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout a year later, Catherine Vance approached me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow did she know you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe had been receiving treatment coordination for another family member.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cElise?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat isn\u2019t relevant.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything has become relevant.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her lawyer intervened.<\/p>\n
\u201cMr. Mercer, let her explain chronologically.\u201d<\/p>\n
I hated that he was right.<\/p>\n
Rachel continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cCatherine told me she represented a family estate dispute. She said biological material belonging to an heir needed independent preservation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn\u2019t explain a child.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you do?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI helped transfer the sample.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIllegally?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The admission came without excuse.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor money?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt first, no.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe paid me later.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTwenty-five thousand.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo keep quiet.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara asked, \u201cWhen did pregnancy enter this?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter the transfer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhose pregnancy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMine.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room went still.<\/p>\n
I stared at Rachel.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou carried Ethan.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re his mother.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLegally and emotionally, yes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBiologically?\u201d<\/p>\n
She swallowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara\u2019s fingers tightened around mine.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhose egg?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel looked toward her attorney.<\/p>\n
He nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cDonor egg.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhose?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnonymous, as far as I knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAs far as you knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did Catherine tell you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat the embryo was being created for inheritance testing.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat makes no medical sense.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re an embryology technician.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo you knew this wasn\u2019t about testing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBy then, yes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy agree?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel looked ashamed.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I had been trying to become a mother for years.\u201d<\/p>\n
The answer silenced me.<\/p>\n
\u201cI couldn\u2019t produce viable eggs. Catherine knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe had access to information she should never have had.\u201d<\/p>\n
That pattern again.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe offered you a child.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe said an embryo could be created with donor material and your sample. She said I could carry the pregnancy and raise the child.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn exchange for what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cProof.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Richard Mercer\u2019s acknowledged family line could produce a biological heir.\u201d<\/p>\n
I frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat still makes no sense.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause she lied to me too.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat was the real purpose?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI learned later.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian.\u201d<\/p>\n
Of course.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDuring my pregnancy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe arrived at my apartment furious.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe had discovered what Catherine had done.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian didn\u2019t arrange Ethan\u2019s conception.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
That changed one of our central assumptions.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he know about my sample?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe knew Catherine was looking for biological leverage. He didn\u2019t know she had used it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he do?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe told me to terminate the pregnancy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara inhaled sharply.<\/p>\n
Rachel continued before I reacted.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen he apologized.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a strange sequence.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was panicking.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Catherine planned to use the baby in the Mercer inheritance dispute.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf she could establish that your biological child existed outside your marriage, she believed she could create enough scandal and legal confusion to force Margaret into negotiating Julian\u2019s claim.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe created a child as leverage.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel\u2019s eyes filled.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt sick.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did Julian do after telling you to terminate?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe came back the next day.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said the child had done nothing wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leave the child out of it.<\/p>\n
The recording suddenly had a history.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe offered me money to disappear.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe offered money to protect us.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSame result.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDifferent reason.\u201d<\/p>\n
I waited.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said Catherine would never stop using Ethan if she could find him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo he moved you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNorthline payments.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy use stolen money?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t know it was stolen.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe could have paid personally.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said personal payments could be traced by Catherine.\u201d<\/p>\n
That was plausible.<\/p>\n
It did not absolve him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn\u2019t he tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel\u2019s expression hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cI asked him that many times.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said you would destroy him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was right.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe also said you would take Ethan.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stopped.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe believed once you knew, your lawyers would establish paternity and remove him from me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI wouldn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know that now.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI would not take a child from the only mother he knows.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel studied me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can say that because you\u2019ve had three hours to think about him.\u201d<\/p>\n
That hurt.<\/p>\n
She continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian had spent years believing your family solved problems by taking control.\u201d<\/p>\n
I glanced at my mother\u2019s legacy.<\/p>\n
He had evidence for that belief.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did Catherine want after Ethan was born?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDNA.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe blood spot.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou gave it to her?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen how?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe obtained it through the screening laboratory.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian found out.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd moved you again.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy did he keep the genetic report?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo know whether Catherine had actually done what she claimed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd it confirmed Ethan is mine.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel\u2019s face softened.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I could barely ask the next question.<\/p>\n
\u201cCan I see him?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her eyes moved toward the staircase.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
My chest tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he\u2019s three.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou are a stranger.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has already had too many adults disappear.\u201d<\/p>\n
That stopped me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho disappeared?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEleven months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said coming here had become dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Daniel was talking?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Ethan miss him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The answer made something ache unexpectedly.<\/p>\n
\u201cDoes he love Julian?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked away.<\/p>\n
A child I had never met loved the man I currently wanted prosecuted.<\/p>\n
Nothing was simple enough.<\/p>\n
Clara asked gently, \u201cRachel, did Julian ever hurt Ethan?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThreaten you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cControl you?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel considered.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe controlled information.\u201d<\/p>\n
That sounded like him.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut he never threatened Ethan.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he ever talk about Liam?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked back.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat you were his brother.\u201d<\/p>\n
My throat tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat else?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat you would have been a good father if things were different.\u201d<\/p>\n
I could not answer.<\/p>\n
Clara\u2019s eyes filled.<\/p>\n
Rachel continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe hated you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd loved you.\u201d<\/p>\n
I almost laughed.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m telling you what I saw.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian destroyed my marriage.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe stole from me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe hid my child.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you call that love?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI said he loved you. I didn\u2019t say he knew how to do it without resentment.\u201d<\/p>\n
That sentence remained with me.<\/p>\n
I asked, \u201cWhere is Catherine?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hoped you knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe contacted me three weeks ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
My pulse accelerated.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did she want?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEthan.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara went rigid.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid she threaten you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe said Julian could no longer protect us.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy not?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe said he had lost control of Mercer.\u201d<\/p>\n
That meant Catherine had been watching recent events before I knew anything.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat else?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe said Ethan belonged with his real family.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt anger rise.<\/p>\n
\u201cMeaning me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel looked directly into the camera.<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian.\u201d<\/p>\n
I frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy Julian?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe said he was the rightful Mercer heir.\u201d<\/p>\n
There it was.<\/p>\n
Catherine did not see children as people.<\/p>\n
She saw them as pieces in a succession argument.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is Ethan right now?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel\u2019s attorney intervened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are not disclosing location beyond law enforcement.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGood.\u201d<\/p>\n
I surprised everyone.<\/p>\n
\u201cKeep it that way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven from me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her expression shifted.<\/p>\n
\u201cUntil security is arranged.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Nina.<\/p>\n
\u201cProtect them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAlready happening.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCatherine cannot get near him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe won\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Rachel again.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want a new DNA test.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI expected that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIndependent.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith full chain of custody.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I\u2019m not asking for custody.\u201d<\/p>\n
She blinked.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot now. Not while we\u2019re figuring out what happened.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara squeezed my hand.<\/p>\n
Rachel\u2019s shoulders loosened slightly.<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t thank me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I don\u2019t know what I\u2019m doing yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
That was the most truthful thing I could say.<\/p>\n
After the call ended, I remained seated.<\/p>\n
Clara said nothing for a while.<\/p>\n
Then:<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have two sons.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou heard her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI want the test.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFair.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked toward the NICU.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne born yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOne three years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd neither came into your life the way they should have.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
She rested her head against the pillow.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you thinking?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Julian protected Ethan.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd hid him from me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBoth can be true.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I hated that.<\/p>\n
It would have been easier if every action fit neatly beneath villain or victim.<\/p>\n
But Julian had harmed us deliberately.<\/p>\n
And somewhere inside that same damaged man, a line existed that Catherine could not make him cross.<\/p>\n
A child.<\/p>\n
My phone rang.<\/p>\n
Marcus.<\/p>\n
I answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cPlease tell me Mercer hasn\u2019t exploded.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot literally.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPromising.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian left.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHeadquarters.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTwenty minutes ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSecurity was watching him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe walked out with counsel.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUnknown.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTrack the SUV.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe didn\u2019t take it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPhone?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLeft in his office.\u201d<\/p>\n
My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe knew we found Rachel.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho told him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCould be nobody.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMarcus.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s more.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore he left, he accessed an old encrypted archive.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhich one?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMHC correspondence.\u201d<\/p>\n
My pulse quickened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he download?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUnknown.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDestination?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cExternal drive.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCan you identify the files?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m reconstructing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDo it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Marcus hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Liam?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian left something on your desk.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAn envelope.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t touch it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does it say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYour name.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnything else?\u201d<\/p>\n
Marcus was silent.<\/p>\n
\u201cMarcus.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThree words.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
He read them.<\/p>\n
Catherine found Leo.<\/p>\n
By sunrise, I knew more about Rachel Donovan than I had known about some executives who worked for me for a decade. Thirty-six. Former embryology technician. No criminal record. No … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23789,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23828","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\/23828","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=23828"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23828\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23881,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23828\/revisions\/23881"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/23789"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=23828"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=23828"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=23828"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}