Three slow knocks echoed through the tiny reading room.<\/p>\n
Neither Caroline nor I moved.<\/p>\n
The silence that followed was somehow worse.<\/p>\n
Knock.<\/p>\n
Knock.<\/p>\n
Knock.<\/p>\n
Exactly three more.<\/p>\n
Caroline slowly stood.<\/p>\n
She didn\u2019t walk toward the door.<\/p>\n
Instead, she crossed to the window and carefully lifted one corner of the curtain.<\/p>\n
The color drained from her face.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey found me.\u201d<\/p>\n
I whispered, \u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
She immediately let the curtain fall.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are two men outside.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you recognize them?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAre they looking up here?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of them is.\u201d<\/p>\n
My pulse began hammering against my ribs.<\/p>\n
\u201cShould we call the police?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline didn\u2019t answer immediately.<\/p>\n
Instead, she picked up the manila folder and removed nearly half of the documents.<\/p>\n
She slid them into a drawer beneath the bookshelf.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy are you hiding those?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn case they come upstairs.\u201d<\/p>\n
She handed me the remaining file.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we get separated, take this.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t understand.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t have to.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her voice was calm, but her hands were shaking.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou only have to remember one thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t let Felix know we\u2019ve met.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another knock.<\/p>\n
This time louder.<\/p>\n
A woman\u2019s voice floated through the door.<\/p>\n
\u201cCaroline?\u201d<\/p>\n
It was the bookstore owner.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything alright?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline visibly relaxed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, Helen. Give me one minute.\u201d<\/p>\n
The owner walked away.<\/p>\n
I released a breath I hadn\u2019t realized I was holding.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou thought it was them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo did you.\u201d<\/p>\n
She wasn\u2019t wrong.<\/p>\n
After waiting another minute, Caroline opened the door.<\/p>\n
The hallway was empty.<\/p>\n
She closed it again.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve learned to expect company whenever I get too close to the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked down at the envelope with my name written across the front.<\/p>\n
\u201cCan I open it now?\u201d<\/p>\n
She nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that\u2019s why you\u2019re here.\u201d<\/p>\n
I carefully broke the seal.<\/p>\n
Inside was a folded letter.<\/p>\n
And a photograph.<\/p>\n
The photograph slipped onto my lap first.<\/p>\n
I froze.<\/p>\n
It showed Felix.<\/p>\n
Me.<\/p>\n
And another woman.<\/p>\n
The picture had been taken from across the street.<\/p>\n
Neither Felix nor I had noticed the camera.<\/p>\n
The woman stood only a few feet behind us.<\/p>\n
She was smiling.<\/p>\n
Her hand rested gently against her stomach.<\/p>\n
Pregnant.<\/p>\n
Elise.<\/p>\n
The date stamped on the back made my stomach twist.<\/p>\n
Three years earlier.<\/strong><\/p>\n Three years.<\/p>\n Not five months.<\/p>\n Three years.<\/p>\n I unfolded the letter with trembling hands.<\/p>\n The handwriting matched the words on the envelope.<\/p>\n Nora,<\/strong><\/p>\n If you\u2019re reading this, then something has gone wrong.<\/p>\n I don\u2019t know whether Felix finally told you the truth.<\/p>\n I don\u2019t believe he ever will.<\/p>\n By now, you\u2019ve probably been told that I\u2019m the other woman.<\/p>\n That\u2019s the story everyone believes.<\/p>\n It isn\u2019t true.<\/p>\n I\u2019m writing this because I can\u2019t keep living inside his lies.<\/p>\n If anything happens to me, you deserve to know that I never wanted to hurt you.<\/p>\n In fact\u2026<\/p>\n I tried to find you.<\/p>\n Twice.<\/p>\n He stopped me both times.<\/p>\n The letter ended there.<\/p>\n The second page was missing.<\/p>\n I turned the envelope upside down.<\/p>\n Nothing else fell out.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s it?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n Caroline frowned.<\/p>\n \u201cThere should be another page.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ve read this before?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut the envelope feels thicker.\u201d<\/p>\n I looked inside again.<\/p>\n Empty.<\/p>\n Caroline took the envelope and ran her finger along the inside seam.<\/p>\n Her expression changed.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was opened before.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe glue was resealed.\u201d<\/p>\n Someone had removed part of the letter.<\/p>\n Someone who knew exactly what Elise wanted me to read.<\/p>\n My phone suddenly vibrated.<\/p>\n One new message.<\/p>\n From Felix.<\/p>\n \u2018Conference got canceled. I\u2019ll be home in twenty minutes.\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n Twenty minutes.<\/p>\n I looked at the clock.<\/p>\n If I left now, I\u2019d barely make it before him.<\/p>\n \u201cI have to go.\u201d<\/p>\n Caroline nodded.<\/p>\n \u201cTake the photograph.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat about the letter?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll have it tested.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFingerprints.\u201d<\/p>\n She walked me downstairs through a side staircase that exited into the alley behind the bookstore.<\/p>\n Before I climbed into my car, she caught my arm.<\/p>\n \u201cNora.\u201d<\/p>\n I turned.<\/p>\n \u201cWhatever Felix tells you tonight\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n She hesitated.<\/p>\n \u201c\u2026don\u2019t tell him you know German.\u201d<\/p>\n I stared at her.<\/p>\n \u201cI never mentioned that.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThen how\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n Caroline looked genuinely confused.<\/p>\n \u201cYou didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n She slowly released my arm.<\/p>\n \u201cI only assumed\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n A cold wave passed through me.<\/p>\n No.<\/p>\n She hadn\u2019t assumed.<\/p>\n Someone had told her.<\/p>\n The only question was\u2026<\/p>\n Who?<\/p>\n I drove home with one question repeating in my mind.<\/p>\n How did Caroline know about the German?<\/p>\n I had never told Felix.<\/p>\n Never told my coworkers.<\/p>\n Never mentioned it to my friends.<\/p>\n Even at the community center, I had enrolled under my maiden name because I wanted learning German to be a surprise for our next anniversary.<\/p>\n Only one person there knew why I was taking the classes.<\/p>\n My teacher.<\/p>\n Mrs. Hoffmann.<\/p>\n A retired translator from Munich.<\/p>\n She had promised never to mention my lessons to anyone.<\/p>\n She had laughed when I told her.<\/p>\n \u201cYou want to surprise your husband.\u201d<\/p>\n I had smiled.<\/p>\n \u201cI want to understand his family.\u201d<\/p>\n Now I wasn\u2019t sure whether anyone\u2019s promises meant anything anymore.<\/p>\n \u2026<\/p>\n By the time I reached our neighborhood, my hands had finally stopped shaking.<\/p>\n Felix\u2019s car wasn\u2019t in the driveway yet.<\/p>\n I had beaten him home.<\/p>\n Good.<\/p>\n I hurried inside, locked the front door, and carried the folder upstairs.<\/p>\n The first thing I did was remove the family photo from our bedroom wall.<\/p>\n Behind it was the small fireproof safe where we kept passports, birth certificates, insurance policies, and a few pieces of jewelry.<\/p>\n I entered the code.<\/p>\n The door clicked open.<\/p>\n I placed the photographs inside.<\/p>\n Then I hesitated.<\/p>\n No.<\/p>\n If Felix ever opened the safe, that would be the first place he looked.<\/p>\n I took everything back out.<\/p>\n Instead, I walked into the guest room.<\/p>\n At the back of the closet sat an old sewing machine my grandmother had given me years earlier.<\/p>\n It hadn\u2019t worked in almost a decade.<\/p>\n Inside its wooden case was a false compartment.<\/p>\n Even Felix didn\u2019t know it existed.<\/p>\n I slid the photographs, copies of the bank records, and my notebook inside before locking the compartment again.<\/p>\n Only then did I hear the garage door opening.<\/p>\n Felix was home.<\/p>\n I walked downstairs just as he entered through the kitchen.<\/p>\n He smiled the moment he saw me.<\/p>\n \u201cPerfect timing.\u201d<\/p>\n He kissed my forehead.<\/p>\n His jacket smelled faintly of expensive cologne.<\/p>\n Not the one I had bought him for Christmas.<\/p>\n A different scent.<\/p>\n One I had noticed yesterday when he hugged the pregnant woman.<\/p>\n \u201cYou look tired,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n \u201cLong day.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cConference canceled?\u201d<\/p>\n He blinked.<\/p>\n \u201cYeah.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThey wrapped things up early.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSo you drove straight home?\u201d<\/p>\n His smile never changed.<\/p>\n \u201cOf course.\u201d<\/p>\n Another lie.<\/p>\n I had watched him leave the apartment building less than two hours earlier.<\/p>\n \u201cI made your favorite pasta,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n He wrapped his arms around me.<\/p>\n For a second, I almost forgot everything.<\/p>\n That was the cruelest part.<\/p>\n He knew exactly how to be the husband I loved.<\/p>\n Even while living another life.<\/p>\n \u2026<\/p>\n Dinner was strangely quiet.<\/p>\n Felix kept checking his phone whenever he thought I wasn\u2019t looking.<\/p>\n At 8:17 p.m., it buzzed again.<\/p>\n He turned the screen away from me.<\/p>\n \u201cI have to answer this.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWork?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cUnfortunately.\u201d<\/p>\n He stepped outside onto the back patio.<\/p>\n He thought the sliding glass door was closed.<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n I couldn\u2019t hear every word.<\/p>\n Only fragments.<\/p>\n \u201c\u2026tomorrow\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201c\u2026she doesn\u2019t know\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201c\u2026too risky\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201c\u2026my mother\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n Then his voice became lower.<\/p>\n A minute later, he came back inside smiling.<\/p>\n \u201cEverything okay?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n \u201cJust another problem at work.\u201d<\/p>\n I nodded.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m going upstairs.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t stay up waiting for me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI won\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n But I did.<\/p>\n From the upstairs window, I watched him through a narrow gap in the curtains.<\/p>\n At exactly 9:06 p.m., headlights appeared at the end of our driveway.<\/p>\n A black sedan.<\/p>\n It stopped without turning off the engine.<\/p>\n Felix walked outside carrying a thick manila envelope.<\/p>\n The driver never got out.<\/p>\n Felix handed the envelope through the passenger window.<\/p>\n In return, the driver gave him another one.<\/p>\n No words.<\/p>\n No handshake.<\/p>\n The exchange lasted less than twenty seconds.<\/p>\n Then the sedan disappeared into the night.<\/p>\n Felix stood in the driveway watching it leave.<\/p>\n When he finally came back inside, the envelope he carried looked much thinner than before.<\/p>\n I waited until he fell asleep.<\/p>\n Then I quietly went to the laundry room.<\/p>\n His jacket was hanging exactly where he had left it.<\/p>\n I slipped my hand into the inside pocket.<\/p>\n Nothing.<\/p>\n The envelope was gone.<\/p>\n But tucked into the breast pocket was something much smaller.<\/p>\n A folded receipt.<\/p>\n I unfolded it carefully.<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t from a store.<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t from a restaurant.<\/p>\n It was from a medical laboratory.<\/p>\n Across the top, in bold letters, were the words:<\/p>\n CONFIDENTIAL DNA ANALYSIS<\/strong><\/p>\n Below that was a collection date.<\/p>\n Nine days earlier.<\/p>\n The names of the people tested had been covered with black marker.<\/p>\n Except for one line the marker had missed.<\/p>\n Alleged Father: Felix Blake<\/strong><\/p>\n I stared at the paper.<\/p>\n If Felix already believed the baby was his\u2026<\/p>\n Why was he secretly taking a DNA test?<\/p>\n And why was he hiding it from everyone?<\/p>\n I read the receipt three more times.<\/p>\n CONFIDENTIAL DNA ANALYSIS.<\/strong><\/p>\n Alleged Father: Felix Blake.<\/strong><\/p>\n The laboratory\u2019s name was unfamiliar, but one thing stood out.<\/p>\n The collection date.<\/p>\n Nine days ago.<\/p>\n That meant Felix had taken the test long after Elise was already several months pregnant.<\/p>\n If he was so certain the baby was his\u2026<\/p>\n Why test it?<\/p>\n I quickly photographed the receipt and slipped it back into his jacket exactly as I\u2019d found it.<\/p>\n No folds out of place.<\/p>\n No fingerprints if I could help it.<\/p>\n Then I quietly returned upstairs.<\/p>\n Felix was asleep on his side of the bed.<\/p>\n One hand rested beneath his pillow.<\/p>\n The way it always had.<\/p>\n For ten years, I had looked at that face and believed I knew the man beside me.<\/p>\n Now every familiar detail felt like it belonged to a stranger.<\/p>\n I didn\u2019t sleep.<\/p>\n \u2026<\/p>\n The next morning, Felix kissed me goodbye before leaving for work.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll probably be late.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBusy day?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou know how Thursdays are.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI do.\u201d<\/p>\n He smiled.<\/p>\n \u201cI love you.\u201d<\/p>\n The front door closed.<\/p>\n I waited exactly thirty seconds before walking to the window.<\/p>\n Instead of turning toward downtown\u2026<\/p>\n His car headed in the opposite direction.<\/p>\n Toward the apartment.<\/p>\n I wrote down the time.<\/p>\n 8:14 a.m.<\/p>\n Then I called Caroline.<\/p>\n She answered immediately.<\/p>\n \u201cDid something happen?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI found a receipt.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat kind?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cA DNA test.\u201d<\/p>\n Silence.<\/p>\n Then she asked one question.<\/p>\n \u201cWas Felix listed as the alleged father?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI was afraid of that.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ve seen something like this before?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot exactly.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThen explain.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t over the phone.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCaroline.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou need to meet me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAgain?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cToday.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSame bookstore?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n Her voice became much quieter.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s safe anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2026<\/p>\n An hour later, I met her inside a small caf\u00e9 overlooking the river.<\/p>\n She arrived wearing a baseball cap and dark sunglasses.<\/p>\n She looked over both shoulders before sitting down.<\/p>\n \u201cYou really think someone is following you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know they are.\u201d<\/p>\n She reached into her bag and removed a thin file.<\/p>\n \u201cI asked a friend to look into the laboratory listed on your receipt.\u201d<\/p>\n She slid a single page toward me.<\/p>\n \u201cThe test wasn\u2019t ordered by a hospital.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt wasn\u2019t?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt was requested by a private attorney.\u201d<\/p>\n My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n \u201cWhose attorney?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe records are sealed.\u201d<\/p>\n I stared at the paper.<\/p>\n \u201cSo someone hired a lawyer before ordering a DNA test.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cExactly.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat usually means\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThey were preparing for court.\u201d<\/p>\n Court.<\/p>\n Custody?<\/p>\n Inheritance?<\/p>\n Paternity?<\/p>\n Divorce?<\/p>\n My mind raced through every possibility.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was something else,\u201d Caroline said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe laboratory technician remembered the case.\u201d<\/p>\n I looked up.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecause there weren\u2019t two DNA samples.\u201d<\/p>\n I frowned.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere were three.\u201d<\/p>\n I blinked.<\/p>\n \u201cThree?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe technician couldn\u2019t tell us whose samples they belonged to.\u201d<\/p>\n I leaned back in my chair.<\/p>\n Three samples.<\/p>\n One was Felix.<\/p>\n One was the baby.<\/p>\n Who was the third?<\/p>\n Elise?<\/p>\n Another man?<\/p>\n Someone else entirely?<\/p>\n Before I could ask, Caroline lowered her voice.<\/p>\n \u201cNora\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t think this pregnancy is the center of the story.\u201d<\/p>\n I stared at her.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s only one piece.\u201d<\/p>\n A chill crept up my spine.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat are you saying?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI think someone has been planning something for years.\u201d<\/p>\n Years.<\/p>\n Not months.<\/p>\n Years.<\/p>\n At that exact moment, my phone vibrated.<\/p>\n A text from Ingrid.<\/p>\n Family Dinner. Sunday. 6:00 p.m. Don\u2019t be late. We have wonderful news to celebrate.<\/strong><\/p>\n Wonderful news.<\/p>\n I already knew what they wanted to celebrate.<\/p>\n The baby.<\/p>\n But another message arrived before I could reply.<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t from Ingrid.<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t from Felix.<\/p>\n It was from an unknown number.<\/p>\n There was only one photograph.<\/p>\n No words.<\/p>\n I opened it.<\/p>\n It showed me leaving Hawthorne Books two days earlier.<\/p>\n The picture had been taken from across the street.<\/p>\n I hadn\u2019t noticed anyone there.<\/p>\n A second image followed.<\/p>\n This one showed me standing beside my car outside the parking garage.<\/p>\n Then a third.<\/p>\n I was unlocking my front door yesterday afternoon.<\/p>\n Someone had followed me.<\/p>\n For days.<\/p>\n Maybe longer.<\/p>\n Finally, a last message appeared beneath the photographs.<\/p>\n Stop looking for Elise.<\/strong><\/p>\n The next person who gets hurt won\u2019t be her.<\/strong><\/p>\n I felt every ounce of warmth leave my body.<\/p>\n Whoever was watching me\u2026<\/p>\n Wanted me to know they could reach me anywhere.<\/p>\n I read the message three times.<\/p>\n Stop looking for Elise.<\/strong><\/p>\n The next person who gets hurt won\u2019t be her.<\/strong><\/p>\n My first instinct was to delete it.<\/p>\n Instead, I took screenshots.<\/p>\n Then I forwarded everything to the private email account I had created.<\/p>\n When I looked up again, Caroline\u2019s expression had changed.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ve gone pale.\u201d<\/p>\n I handed her my phone.<\/p>\n She studied each photograph carefully.<\/p>\n The first showed me leaving Hawthorne Books.<\/p>\n The second captured me outside the parking garage.<\/p>\n The third showed me unlocking my own front door.<\/p>\n She zoomed in.<\/p>\n Then frowned.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLook at the time.\u201d<\/p>\n I compared the timestamps.<\/p>\n Bookstore.<\/p>\n 2:43 p.m.<\/p>\n Garage.<\/p>\n 4:58 p.m.<\/p>\n House.<\/p>\n 6:21 p.m.<\/p>\n \u201cSo?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOne person couldn\u2019t have taken all of these.\u201d<\/p>\n I looked again.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t understand.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe bookstore photo was taken from directly across the street.\u201d<\/p>\n She pointed at the angle.<\/p>\n \u201cThe parking garage picture came from the roof of another building.\u201d<\/p>\n She switched to the last image.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd this one\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n She enlarged a reflection in my living room window.<\/p>\n \u201c\u2026was taken from inside a parked vehicle.\u201d<\/p>\n I stared at her.<\/p>\n \u201cYou think there was more than one person?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI think at least three.\u201d<\/p>\n Three.<\/p>\n Not one.<\/p>\n That wasn\u2019t someone casually watching me.<\/p>\n That was surveillance.<\/p>\n Professional surveillance.<\/p>\n \u2026<\/p>\n Neither of us spoke for nearly a minute.<\/p>\n Finally I whispered,<\/p>\n \u201cWho would spend this much effort watching me?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut whoever they are\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re organized.\u201d<\/p>\n My phone rang.<\/p>\n Felix.<\/p>\n I silenced it.<\/p>\n It rang again.<\/p>\n Then again.<\/p>\n On the fourth call, I answered.<\/p>\n \u201cHi.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhere are you?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRunning errands.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou sound strange.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m just tired.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI tried calling four times.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI left my phone in my purse.\u201d<\/p>\n There was a pause.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been thinking.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAbout what?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMom wants us to come over early on Sunday.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFor dinner?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cActually\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n His voice became unusually cheerful.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019ve planned a little family celebration.\u201d<\/p>\n My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat are we celebrating?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ll see.\u201d<\/p>\n He laughed.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a surprise.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI hate surprises.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ll love this one.\u201d<\/p>\n I almost asked,<\/p>\n \u201cIs it because your girlfriend is pregnant?\u201d<\/p>\n Instead I smiled into the phone.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll be there.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2026<\/p>\n After hanging up, Caroline reached into her bag again.<\/p>\n \u201cI wasn\u2019t planning to show you this today.\u201d<\/p>\n She handed me another envelope.<\/p>\n Unlike Elise\u2019s letter, this one contained photographs.<\/p>\n Lots of them.<\/p>\n Every picture featured Felix.<\/p>\n But not with Elise.<\/p>\n With different people.<\/p>\n Different cities.<\/p>\n Different years.<\/p>\n \u201cThis one is from Dallas.\u201d<\/p>\n She pointed.<\/p>\n \u201cThis one was taken in Nashville.\u201d<\/p>\n Another.<\/p>\n \u201cPhoenix.\u201d<\/p>\n Another.<\/p>\n \u201cSt. Louis.\u201d<\/p>\n Every photograph showed Felix entering office buildings, apartment complexes, or hotels.<\/p>\n Sometimes alone.<\/p>\n Sometimes meeting strangers.<\/p>\n Always carrying the same black leather briefcase.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat am I looking at?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe dates.\u201d<\/p>\n I checked.<\/p>\n The oldest photograph was nearly eight years old.<\/p>\n Eight years.<\/p>\n Long before Elise\u2019s pregnancy.<\/p>\n Long before our fertility treatments.<\/p>\n Long before I had any reason to doubt him.<\/p>\n \u201cHe traveled a lot for work,\u201d I said weakly.<\/p>\n Caroline nodded.<\/p>\n \u201cSo I thought.\u201d<\/p>\n She pulled out one final photograph.<\/p>\n This one made my heart stop.<\/p>\n It showed Felix standing outside a courthouse.<\/p>\n Beside him\u2026<\/p>\n was Ingrid.<\/p>\n His mother.<\/p>\n And beside Ingrid\u2026<\/p>\n stood a man in a dark suit carrying several thick folders.<\/p>\n The caption written beneath the photograph read:<\/p>\n Family Trust Meeting<\/strong><\/p>\n Date:<\/p>\n Seven years earlier.<\/p>\n I frowned.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat trust?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s exactly the question.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe don\u2019t have a family trust.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n She looked directly into my eyes.<\/p>\n \u201cBut Felix\u2019s family does.\u201d<\/p>\n My pulse quickened.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat does that have to do with me?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI spent weeks trying to answer that.\u201d<\/p>\n She slowly slid one final sheet of paper across the table.<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t a photograph.<\/p>\n It was a copy of a handwritten note.<\/p>\n Across the top, in Ingrid\u2019s handwriting, were five chilling words.<\/p>\n \u2018Find a wife who qualifies.\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n Below that\u2026<\/p>\n a list.<\/p>\n Age.<\/p>\n Education.<\/p>\n Income.<\/p>\n Health.<\/p>\n Family history.<\/p>\n Fertility.<\/p>\n Every category had check marks beside it.<\/p>\n At the bottom of the page\u2026<\/p>\n one name had been circled in blue ink.<\/p>\n
\n
\nPART 7 \u2013 SOMEONE ELSE KNEW MY SECRET<\/h1>\n
PART 8 \u2013 THE DNA REPORT CHANGED EVERYTHING I THOUGHT I KNEW<\/h1>\n
PART 9 \u2013 THE PERSON FOLLOWING ME WAS ALREADY INSIDE MY LIFE<\/h1>\n