Chapter 3: The Baby Wasn't Supposed to Exist
I called Vanessa seventeen times.
Every call went straight to voicemail.
The eighteenth time, her phone rang twice before someone answered.
But it wasn't my wife.
“Hello?””
A man's voice.
I froze.
“Who is this?””
“Who are you?””
“I'm Daniel Carter. I'm Vanessa's husband. Where is she?””
Silence.
Then the man said something that made my blood turn cold.
“Daniel?””
I recognized the voice.
It belonged to Ethan Cole's younger brother.
Michael.
I hadn't spoken to him in almost four years.
“Michael?””
“Listen, Daniel. You need to calm down.””
“Why do you have my wife's phone?””
“She's not in a position to talk right now.””
“Where is she?””
“She's safe.””
“Where is my daughter?””
Another silence.
Then Michael said, “She's with family.””
I gripped the phone harder.
“I'm her family.””
“Daniel, this is complicated.””
“I'm standing in an empty hospital room because my wife walked out with a newborn baby. I think you can understand why I'm not interested in hearing that this is complicated.””
Michael sighed.
“I'll explain everything.””
“Start with why Ethan's name is on my daughter's birth records.””
There was a long pause.
Then Michael whispered:
“Because Ethan was supposed to have a child.””
I closed my eyes.
“Was supposed to?””
“Daniel, you don't know what Vanessa went through after he died.””
“I know she lost her husband. I know she was devastated. I know she eventually married me. What I don't know is why she used his genetic material to have a baby without telling me.””
Michael didn't answer.
I glanced toward Lily.
She was standing beside the hospital bed, looking at the empty bassinet.
Her little face was pale.
I lowered my voice.
“Michael, where is Vanessa?””
“Come to the old house.””
“What old house?””
“Ethan's parents' house. I'll send you the address.””
Then he hung up.
I stared at the phone.
The old house.
The place Vanessa hadn't visited since Ethan's funeral.
Why would she take our newborn there?
I couldn't leave Lily alone, so I called my mother.
She arrived twenty minutes later.
When she saw Lily's swollen eyes, she immediately pulled her granddaughter into a hug.
“What happened, sweetheart?””
Lily buried her face in Grandma's coat.
“Mommy doesn't like me anymore.””
My mother looked at me.
I shook my head.
“It's a long story.””
“Then tell me.””
“Not here.””
I explained that Vanessa had taken the baby and that I needed to find her.
My mother didn't hesitate.
“Take care of this. I'll stay with Lily.””
I crouched in front of my daughter.
“Listen, sweetheart. Grandma is going to take you home for a little while.””
“Are you going to find Mommy?””
“Yes.””
“And my sister?””
I swallowed.
“Yes. I'm going to bring her home.””
Lily reached into her backpack and took out the little stuffed rabbit.
“Can you give this to her?””
I kissed her forehead.
“I promise.””
She hesitated.
Then she whispered:
“Daddy, I think Mommy is scared of me.””
I felt my throat tighten.
“Why would you think that?””
“Because when I asked if the baby was going to love me, Mommy said she didn't want us together.””
My heart broke.
I pulled her into my arms.
“Your sister is going to love you more than anything. And nobody gets to decide that you aren't allowed to be her big sister.””
Lily nodded.
But as I stood up, she caught my hand.
“Daddy?””
“Yes?””
“Mommy said something else.””
“What?””
“She said the baby wasn't supposed to be born.””
I went still.
“Did she say why?””
Lily shook her head.
“She was talking to someone on the phone. She said the doctors made a mistake.””
I stared at her.
Then I remembered Elaine's words.
The embryo transfer was never supposed to result in a pregnancy.
I kissed Lily's forehead again and left.
The old Cole family house stood at the end of a quiet residential street.
It was a large brick home with white shutters and a wide porch. The garden had become overgrown, and several newspapers were scattered near the front door.
I hadn't visited since Ethan's funeral.
When I knocked, Michael opened the door almost immediately.
He looked older.
His beard was untrimmed, and there were dark circles beneath his eyes.
“Daniel.””
“Where is Vanessa?””
“Come inside.””
“I'm not coming inside until you tell me where my wife and daughter are.””
Michael glanced over his shoulder.
Then he stepped aside.
“They're upstairs.””
I walked past him.
The house smelled of old furniture and cigarette smoke.
On the wall hung a large framed photograph of Ethan.
He was smiling, wearing the same blue shirt he'd worn in the photograph Vanessa kept in her jewelry box.
I stopped for a moment.
Then I heard a baby crying upstairs.
I ran.
Vanessa was sitting in the guest bedroom, holding our newborn daughter against her chest.
Her face was swollen from crying.
When she saw me, she immediately stood up.
“Daniel?””
I approached her.
“Give me the baby.””
She tightened her arms.
“Please don't.””
“Vanessa, I've been looking for you.””
“I know.””
“You took her from the hospital.””
“I needed to get out.””
“You could have told me where you were going.””
“You wouldn't have let me leave.””
“Because you're acting like something is chasing you!””
She looked down at the baby.
Then she whispered:
“Something is.””
I reached toward the child.
“Let me hold her.””
Vanessa hesitated.
Then, slowly, she placed the baby in my arms.
She was tiny.
Her cheeks were pink, and her dark hair curled slightly above her ears.
I felt her warm little body settle against my chest.
For the first time since entering the hospital, I could breathe.
“Hello, sweetheart,” I whispered.
The baby opened her eyes.
They were a deep brown.
Vanessa watched me.
“She's beautiful,” I said.
“She is.””
I looked up.
“Then why are you so afraid?””
Vanessa sat down.
Michael closed the bedroom door.
Nobody spoke for several seconds.
Finally, I asked the question that had been burning inside me.
“Is this Ethan's child?””
Vanessa stared at the floor.
“Yes.””
“Then why did the clinic say something was wrong with the embryo?””
Her head snapped up.
“You spoke to Elaine?””
“Yes.””
Vanessa looked horrified.
“What did she tell you?””
“That the embryo wasn't supposed to result in a pregnancy.””
Vanessa covered her mouth.
Michael stepped forward.
“Daniel, you need to understand something about Ethan.””
I looked at him.
“Then tell me.””
Michael pulled a chair closer.
“Ethan was diagnosed with a hereditary condition shortly before his accident. It was a rare genetic disorder that affected several members of our father's family.””
I looked at the baby.
“What condition?””
“An inherited neurological disease. It could be passed down to children.””
Vanessa began crying.
“When Ethan found out, he was terrified.””
Michael continued.
“He wanted children more than anything. But the doctors warned him that there was a significant risk of passing on the condition.””
I looked at Vanessa.
“Is that why you froze the embryos?””
She nodded.
“We had already created several embryos before the diagnosis. Ethan wanted them destroyed. I couldn't do it.””
Michael looked away.
“He asked me to make sure she didn't use them.””
I stared at him.
“What?””
“Before he died, Ethan made his wishes clear. He didn't want any child of his to be born carrying that disease.””
Vanessa shook her head.
“He was frightened. He wasn't thinking clearly.””
“He was thinking about the child,” Michael replied.
“Don't you dare judge me!””
Michael stood up.
“I watched my brother suffer. I watched him spend his final months terrified that he might leave behind a child who would go through the same thing.””
Vanessa pressed the baby closer.
“He wanted to be a father!””
“And he wanted to protect his children!””
I stepped between them.
“Enough.””
The baby began crying.
I gently rocked her.
“Vanessa, why did you go through with the transfer?””
She wiped her cheeks.
“Because I wanted to give Ethan something he never got to have.””
I stared at her.
“You wanted to give your dead husband a child?””
“I wanted to have a piece of him.””
“And what about me?””
She looked at me.
“I thought you would understand.””
“Understand what? That you deliberately made me believe this was our biological child?””
“You are her father!””
“Then why did you hide the truth?””
Vanessa opened her mouth.
Nothing came out.
I placed the baby carefully in her arms.
Then I pulled out the stuffed rabbit Lily had given me.
“I promised Lily I'd give this to her sister.””
I placed it beside Vanessa.
For the first time, she looked genuinely ashamed.
“She shouldn't have to be involved in this.””
“She already is. She's nine years old, Vanessa. She watched you slap her hand away from the bassinet. She thinks you don't love her anymore.””
Vanessa lowered her head.
“I didn't mean to hurt her.””
“But you did.””
I turned toward Michael.
“What exactly was the problem with the embryo?””
He hesitated.
Then he walked to the dresser and pulled open the top drawer.
Inside was a thick folder.
He removed several medical documents and placed them on the bed.
“I received copies of the original genetic screening records last week.””
Vanessa immediately stood up.
“Michael, don't.””
He ignored her.
“Daniel, the embryo Vanessa selected was not the embryo she believed it was.””
I looked at the papers.
There were several identification numbers.
One had been circled in red.
Michael pointed to it.
“Ethan and Vanessa created three embryos. Two were screened and found to carry the genetic mutation. The third was never successfully tested because the laboratory couldn't obtain a complete genetic profile.””
I frowned.
“Then why was it transferred?””
“Because Vanessa was told it was safe.””
I looked at my wife.
“Who told you that?””
Vanessa started trembling.
“A woman at the clinic.””
“Who?””
“Her name was Dr. Harper.””
Michael shook his head.
“That's not the whole story.””
He turned another page.
There was a report dated three weeks before the embryo transfer.
The heading read:
*GENETIC SAMPLE DISCREPANCY — CONFIDENTIAL REVIEW.*
I leaned closer.
“What is this?””
Michael's voice dropped.
“The clinic discovered that the embryo's genetic profile didn't match the records attached to it.””
I looked at him.
“What?””
“The sample had been misidentified years ago.””
I felt my stomach tighten.
“Misidentified with whose?””
Michael pointed to the final line.
I read the name.
Then I read it again.
It wasn't Ethan's.
It was a name I recognized from the hospital paperwork.
A name that belonged to someone who had died long before I met Vanessa.
I looked at my wife.
Her face had gone completely white.
“Vanessa,” I whispered.
“Whose embryo did you actually use?””
She shook her head.
“I didn't know.””
“Who is the biological father?””
She started crying.
Michael looked at me.
Then he said:
“The clinic believes the embryo may have been created using genetic material from someone in Ethan's immediate family.””
I stared at him.
“Someone in his family?””
Michael nodded.
“And there's only one person whose sample was stored alongside Ethan's.””
He slowly turned the document toward me.
A second name appeared beneath the identification number.
*MICHAEL COLE.*
The room went silent.
I looked at Michael.
Then at Vanessa.
Then at the sleeping baby.
For a moment, I couldn't understand what I was reading.
“Are you telling me…”
Michael interrupted.
“I didn't know. I swear to you, Daniel. I never consented to anything like this.””
Vanessa was shaking her head.
“No. No, that's impossible.””
I looked down at the baby.
Her little fingers had curled around the edge of my shirt.
And suddenly I understood why Vanessa had panicked when I picked up the hospital paperwork.
It wasn't simply because the baby might not be Ethan's.
It was because the records suggested that the child might be biologically related to someone standing in that very room.
But before I could ask another question, Michael's phone rang.
He answered it.
Listened.
Then his expression changed.
“What do you mean the original sample was compromised?””
He looked at Vanessa.
Then at me.
And finally, he whispered:
“Daniel, there's something else. The laboratory has just confirmed that the genetic records attached to this embryo were altered twice.””
I stared at him.
“Twice?””
Michael nodded slowly.
“And the second alteration happened eleven months ago.””
He looked directly at Vanessa.
“Someone changed the records after she requested the transfer.””
Vanessa began sobbing.
I stepped toward her.
“Who changed them?””
She looked at me with terrified eyes.
Then she whispered five words.
“Your wife wasn't the only one.””
And just as I was about to demand an explanation, someone knocked three times on the bedroom door.
A woman's voice came from the hallway.
“Mrs. Carter? I'm Dr.
Harper. We need to talk about the baby before you leave.””
Vanessa dropped the blanket.
Because the woman standing outside wasn't supposed to know where we were.
May you like
And she had just called our daughter by a name I had never heard before.
*“Is little Emma awake?””*
