Chapter 8
“Why is Lacey with her?”
Dad asked.
Detective Sloan was already calling officers.
I stared at the photograph.
Lacey had come to us.
She had given police the flash drive.
Now she was beside Elaine at the airport.
“Maybe Elaine forced her.”
Dad looked at me.
“Or maybe Lacey never stopped working with them.”
That possibility hurt more than it should have.
I hadn't forgiven Lacey.
But I had started believing she wanted to fix what she'd done.
Twenty minutes later, Sloan returned.
“Airport police detained Elaine.”
“And Lacey?”
“She wasn't detained.”
“Why?”
“Because she's cooperating.”
I blinked.
Sloan almost smiled.
“Lacey contacted us before going to the airport.”
Dad exhaled.
“She set Elaine up.”
“Yes.”
“What did Elaine want?”
“The flash drive.”
“But police already have it.”
“Elaine didn't know Lacey gave us the original.”
I slowly understood.
“She thought Lacey still had it.”
Sloan nodded.
“We gave Lacey a copy containing harmless files.”
“What did Elaine say?”
“Enough.”
My heart raced.
Sloan placed her phone on the table.
“We recorded their conversation.”
She played a short section.
Elaine's voice filled the room.
Once Damon gets out, we can still fix this.
Then Lacey.
How?
Elaine answered.
Claire is emotional. Everyone knows it. We only need the hospital to believe she isn't safe with the baby.
My body went rigid.
Lacey asked, What happens after that?
Elaine's answer came immediately.
Damon becomes the parent everyone trusts.
Dad shut his eyes.
The recording continued.
And the Blake money?
Elaine laughed softly.
That's what this was always about.
Sloan stopped the recording.
My stomach turned.
“She admitted it.”
“Yes.”
“Is that enough?”
“It's very helpful.”
Dad's voice was hard.
“I want her charged.”
“We're pursuing what the evidence supports.”
My phone rang again.
This time it was my doctor.
“Claire, I need you to come to the hospital.”
I stood.
“Is something wrong?”
“You're not in labor, but your latest test results concern me.”
Dad was already grabbing his jacket.
At the hospital, they monitored the baby.
Her heartbeat was strong.
Mine was too fast.
The doctor explained that the sedating medication Damon had given me was leaving my system.
But stress and dehydration had pushed my blood pressure higher.
“You need rest.”
I laughed without humor.
“I'll try.”
She put a hand on my shoulder.
“I mean it. The baby may decide she isn't waiting until September eighteenth.”
As if she understood, my daughter kicked.
That night, Dad sat beside my hospital bed reading legal documents.
I stared at the ceiling.
“Dad?”
“Yes?”
“Did Mom know Aaron?”
He looked up.
“Of course.”
“Was there ever anything between them?”
“No.”
The answer was immediate.
I felt embarrassed.
“I had to ask.”
“I understand.”
He closed the folder.
“Aaron was like family.”
“Why didn't I remember him?”
“You were young when he moved overseas.”
I thought about the strange chain of events.
A dead man.
A donor program.
A hidden fortune.
A husband who treated my pregnancy like an investment.
“I don't want the money.”
Dad nodded.
“I know.”
“I mean it.”
“I know.”
“I want my daughter to have a normal life.”
“You'll make sure she does.”
My eyes filled.
“I'm scared Damon will always find a way back.”
Dad leaned closer.
“Then we make sure every door is closed.”
The next morning, Detective Sloan called.
Damon had been formally charged with additional offenses connected to forgery, unlawful restraint, and the suspected drugging.
Elaine was under investigation.
Dr. Vale had surrendered his license and was cooperating.
For the first time, I felt something close to relief.
Then a nurse entered carrying flowers.
“No name on the card.”
Dad immediately stood.
“Don't touch them.”
The nurse stopped.
A security officer examined the arrangement.
Nothing dangerous.
Just white roses.
A card sat between them.
Detective Sloan arrived and opened it with gloves.
Inside, six words were written.
You can't keep my daughter from me.
Damon.
I stared at the handwriting.
Dad swore.
Sloan's expression hardened.
“He's in custody. He shouldn't be sending anything.”
“Then who brought them?”
Security checked the cameras.
A woman had delivered the flowers.
She wore a baseball cap and sunglasses.
But when they froze the video, I recognized her.
Not Lacey.
Not Elaine.
Someone I had seen before.
May you like
A nurse from Riverside Reproductive Health.
And according to police records, she had disappeared the same day Dr. Vale did.
