Elise did not speak for almost a full minute.<\/p>\n
October seventeenth.<\/p>\n
The date meant something to her.<\/p>\n
That much was obvious.<\/p>\n
She sat with her hands clasped so tightly her knuckles whitened.<\/p>\n
Felix stood across from her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened that night?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI said I don\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou remember something.\u201d<\/p>\n
She closed her eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was a fundraiser.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe hospital event?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe one where you met Daniel?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much did you drink?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot much.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cElise.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTwo glasses of wine.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt sick.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat kind of sick?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDizzy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNauseated?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cConfused?\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise opened her eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened next?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember Daniel helping me outside.\u201d<\/p>\n
Felix\u2019s jaw tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI woke up the next morning.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the apartment.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe apartment Felix uses?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWas Felix there?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnyone?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
I watched her face.<\/p>\n
There was real fear now.<\/p>\n
Not guilt.<\/p>\n
Not evasion.<\/p>\n
Fear.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat were you wearing?\u201d Caroline asked.<\/p>\n
Elise looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you woke up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise went still.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThink.\u201d<\/p>\n
She swallowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy dress.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSame clothes?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShoes?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBy the door.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUnderwear?\u201d<\/p>\n
Felix snapped, \u201cCaroline.\u201d<\/p>\n
She did not look at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m asking because missing time can mean many things.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise looked down.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline softened slightly.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid anything feel wrong physically?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI had cramps.\u201d<\/p>\n
My skin prickled.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat kind?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLower abdomen.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA day.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you tell anyone?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFelix.\u201d<\/p>\n
He nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you think caused it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe said food poisoning.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what Martin\u2019s doctor told me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
Again.<\/p>\n
Martin\u2019s doctor.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cDr. Keller.\u201d<\/p>\n
Felix frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou saw Keller?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMartin sent him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo the apartment.\u201d<\/p>\n
I said, \u201cThe morning after.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline took out her phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s his full name?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMatthew Keller.\u201d<\/p>\n
She searched.<\/p>\n
Then stopped.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cReproductive endocrinology.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room went quiet.<\/p>\n
Not general medicine.<\/p>\n
Not emergency care.<\/p>\n
Fertility.<\/p>\n
I felt the first cold shape of the possibility before anyone said it.<\/p>\n
Elise saw it too.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline looked up.<\/p>\n
\u201cKeller\u2019s affiliated with Mercer Biomedical.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harold swore under his breath.<\/p>\n
Felix stepped back.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cElise.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have missing hours, abdominal cramps, and a fertility specialist examining you the next morning.\u201d<\/p>\n
She stared at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
I hated saying it.<\/p>\n
But someone had to.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou may not have conceived through sex at all.\u201d<\/p>\n
The words broke something in the room.<\/p>\n
Elise shook her head violently.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Felix whispered, \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cNon-consensual insemination would be criminal.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harold looked horrified.<\/p>\n
Even Ingrid, who had spent most of the evening protecting the family, seemed physically ill.<\/p>\n
Sabine said, \u201cCould it happen without her knowing?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline answered carefully.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot in any ordinary clinical setting. But with sedation or impaired consciousness\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cStop.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise\u2019s voice cracked.<\/p>\n
Nobody moved.<\/p>\n
She pressed both hands over her mouth.<\/p>\n
Then she started crying.<\/p>\n
Not quietly.<\/p>\n
Not gracefully.<\/p>\n
The kind of crying that comes when your body itself becomes uncertain.<\/p>\n
Felix moved toward her.<\/p>\n
She backed away.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
He stopped.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not blaming you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t want anyone touching me.\u201d<\/p>\n
He nodded.<\/p>\n
I understood that.<\/p>\n
Too well.<\/p>\n
For years, doctors had touched me in service of becoming pregnant.<\/p>\n
Every exam was consensual.<\/p>\n
Every treatment explained.<\/p>\n
Every failed cycle painful but mine.<\/p>\n
The idea that someone might have taken that same medical machinery and used it on Elise without consent made the room feel contaminated.<\/p>\n
Caroline called Daniel again.<\/p>\n
No answer.<\/p>\n
Again.<\/p>\n
Voicemail.<\/p>\n
She left none.<\/p>\n
I called.<\/p>\n
Still nothing.<\/p>\n
Felix said, \u201cWe need the clinic records.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cGetting medical records tonight is unlikely.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere has to be another way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Laura spoke.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is.\u201d<\/p>\n
Everyone turned.<\/p>\n
She looked exhausted.<\/p>\n
\u201cDr. Keller keeps private procedure logs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline narrowed her eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow do you know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I processed invoices.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor Martin?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere are the logs?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHis office.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhich office?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMercer Biomedical campus.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harold stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
This time I almost laughed.<\/p>\n
Every useful lead began with Harold saying no.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat facility has security.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo you cannot simply walk in.\u201d<\/p>\n
Laura said, \u201cI can.\u201d<\/p>\n
Martin\u2019s former paralegal looked at us.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy access badge still works.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline asked, \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause nobody bothered to deactivate it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOr because Martin expected you to keep working for him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Laura looked down.<\/p>\n
\u201cProbably.\u201d<\/p>\n
I studied her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy help now?\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at the forged document on the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I crossed lines I told myself were administrative.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her voice shook.<\/p>\n
\u201cTonight I realized I don\u2019t know where the lines stopped.\u201d<\/p>\n
That sounded familiar.<\/p>\n
Everyone in this story had discovered morality only after consequences arrived.<\/p>\n
Still, late help was sometimes the only help available.<\/p>\n
We split up.<\/p>\n
Caroline and Laura went to Mercer Biomedical.<\/p>\n
Sabine remained with the codicil.<\/p>\n
Harold and Ingrid stayed because neither trusted the other to leave.<\/p>\n
Felix sat across from Elise without speaking.<\/p>\n
I stood near the window.<\/p>\n
At some point, the family dinner became an overnight siege.<\/p>\n
Coffee replaced wine.<\/p>\n
Candles burned low.<\/p>\n
Nobody touched dessert.<\/p>\n
At 11:46, Caroline called.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m inside.\u201d<\/p>\n
I put her on speaker.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you find Keller\u2019s office?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLogs?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLocked cabinet.\u201d<\/p>\n
Laura\u2019s voice came faintly in the background.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have the key.\u201d<\/p>\n
A pause.<\/p>\n
Metal.<\/p>\n
Paper.<\/p>\n
Then silence.<\/p>\n
\u201cCaroline?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m reading.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
Another pause.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh God.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise closed her eyes.<\/p>\n
Felix gripped the table.<\/p>\n
Caroline continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cOctober seventeenth. Private visit. Female patient listed as A. Weber.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anna Weber again.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat procedure?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
Caroline did not answer immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cEmbryo transfer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nobody breathed.<\/p>\n
Elise whispered, \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline kept reading.<\/p>\n
\u201cSedation administered.\u201d<\/p>\n
Felix stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhose embryo?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRecord says donor material.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat donor?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m looking.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pages turned.<\/p>\n
Then Caroline said, \u201cThere\u2019s a code.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat code?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDM-17.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harold went white.<\/p>\n
I noticed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
He said nothing.<\/p>\n
\u201cHarold.\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel Mercer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise made a sound I will never forget.<\/p>\n
Not a scream.<\/p>\n
Something lower.<\/p>\n
Something stunned out of the body before language.<\/p>\n
Felix sat down hard.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo she was impregnated with Daniel\u2019s child.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline said, \u201cThat\u2019s what this log indicates.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo consent.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo consent form in the file,\u201d Caroline said.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot here.\u201d<\/p>\n
Laura\u2019s voice came through.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s another code.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline paused.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
Laura read.<\/p>\n
\u201cNWB-01.\u201d<\/p>\n
My initials.<\/p>\n
My blood went cold.<\/p>\n
\u201cNora Whitmore Blake.\u201d<\/p>\n
Felix turned toward me.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline went quiet.<\/p>\n
I said, \u201cWhat is NWB-01 attached to?\u201d<\/p>\n
Paper moved.<\/p>\n
Then she answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cPatient genetic profile.\u201d<\/p>\n
I sat down.<\/p>\n
\u201cMine.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy is my profile in Elise\u2019s embryo-transfer file?\u201d<\/p>\n
Nobody spoke.<\/p>\n
My own voice sounded far away.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat part of my profile?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline read silently.<\/p>\n
Then swore.<\/p>\n
\u201cElise.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe embryo wasn\u2019t created only with Daniel\u2019s donor material.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt the room change.<\/p>\n
That made no biological sense.<\/p>\n
Unless\u2014<\/p>\n
My stomach dropped.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline continued carefully.<\/p>\n
\u201cProcedure notes reference an oocyte source coded NWB-01.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stopped breathing.<\/p>\n
Felix stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is an oocyte source?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline did not answer.<\/p>\n
I did.<\/p>\n
\u201cEgg.\u201d<\/p>\n
The word barely came out.<\/p>\n
Elise stared at me.<\/p>\n
I stared back.<\/p>\n
My body went cold from the inside.<\/p>\n
For six years, Felix and I had undergone fertility treatments.<\/p>\n
Egg retrievals.<\/p>\n
Hormone injections.<\/p>\n
Embryology reports.<\/p>\n
Failed cycles.<\/p>\n
Disposal forms.<\/p>\n
Storage forms.<\/p>\n
Too many consent documents.<\/p>\n
Too many samples.<\/p>\n
Too much trust.<\/p>\n
Caroline\u2019s voice came through the speaker.<\/p>\n
\u201cNora.\u201d<\/p>\n
I could not answer.<\/p>\n
She said it again.<\/p>\n
\u201cNora, this file indicates your stored egg material may have been used.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise\u2019s hands moved instinctively to her stomach.<\/p>\n
Her face collapsed.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Felix looked as though he might be sick.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhose child is she?\u201d<\/p>\n
Nobody answered.<\/p>\n
Caroline did.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf this record is accurate, biologically the baby could be Nora\u2019s and Daniel Mercer\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n
I closed my eyes.<\/p>\n
The room disappeared.<\/p>\n
For years, I had mourned the children I could not have.<\/p>\n
For years, I had been told my treatments failed.<\/p>\n
Now somewhere inside the woman my husband had betrayed me with, a child might be growing from one of my stolen eggs.<\/p>\n
When I opened my eyes, Elise was looking at me.<\/p>\n
Not like a rival.<\/p>\n
Not like an enemy.<\/p>\n
Like another woman whose body had been entered into a plan without permission.<\/p>\n
My phone buzzed.<\/p>\n
Unknown number.<\/p>\n
I looked.<\/p>\n
YOU FINALLY FOUND THE PROCEDURE LOG.<\/p>\n
Another message.<\/p>\n
NOW FIND OUT WHY NORA\u2019S EMBRYOS WERE NEVER MEANT TO FAIL.<\/p>\n
Elise did not speak for almost a full minute. October seventeenth. The date meant something to her. That much was obvious. She sat with her hands clasped so tightly her … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":25356,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25371","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\/25371","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=25371"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25371\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25406,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25371\/revisions\/25406"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/25356"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=25371"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=25371"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=25371"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}