Chapter 6: The Woman Who Claimed to Be Her Mother
When Daniel arrived home, two police officers were standing outside the front entrance.
Vanessa sat on the living room sofa, wearing a cream-colored dress and holding a tissue.
She looked perfectly composed.
Beside her sat a lawyer Daniel had never seen before.
Michael stood near the staircase.
Ethan was upstairs with Sophie.
The moment Daniel entered, Vanessa stood.
“Daniel, thank God you're here.””
He didn't answer.
Her lawyer rose.
“Mr. Carter, I'm Jonathan Pierce. I'm representing your wife in a matter concerning the minor child, Sophie Carter.””
Daniel looked at Vanessa.
“Your wife?””
Vanessa's eyes filled.
“Please don't make this difficult.””
Michael stepped forward.
“Daniel, let me handle this.””
Pierce opened a leather folder.
“My client has documentation suggesting that Sophie was improperly registered at birth. She is seeking temporary custody pending a review of the child's biological parentage.””
Daniel laughed without humor.
“Your client has been abusing a fifteen-month-old child. And now she wants custody?””
Vanessa pressed a tissue to her lips.
“I have never abused Sophie.””
One of the officers looked uncomfortable.
Daniel pointed toward the coffee table.
“There's a recording. There are photographs. There are written rules telling a toddler not to cry or ask for her father. There's evidence that she was locked in the laundry room.””
Vanessa's expression hardened.
“You're twisting everything.””
“Then explain the strap.””
“I was disciplining Ethan.””
“He's eight years old!””
“He was hiding Sophie from me!””
“Because he was afraid of you!””
Vanessa suddenly stood.
“Because he knows the truth!””
Everyone went silent.
Daniel took one step forward.
“What truth?””
Vanessa looked at the officers, then at her lawyer.
Pierce touched her elbow.
“Mrs. Carter, I recommend that you don't discuss the underlying facts without reviewing the documents.””
But Vanessa pulled away.
“No. I'm tired of being blamed for everything.””
She faced Daniel.
“You want the truth? Fine. Sophie isn't Laura's daughter.””
Daniel felt his stomach tighten.
“Then whose daughter is she?””
Vanessa looked directly into his eyes.
“Rebecca's.””
The room became silent.
Michael opened his folder.
“That's an allegation. We have documents suggesting that Rebecca never consented to any transfer.””
Vanessa laughed.
“My sister couldn't even take care of herself. She didn't want that baby.””
“Then why did she write that she never gave her away?”” Daniel asked.
Vanessa's expression changed.
For the first time, she looked genuinely frightened.
“Where did you get that?””
“From someone who knows what happened.””
Vanessa turned toward her lawyer.
He immediately closed the folder.
“We're leaving.””
But Daniel wasn't finished.
“Not until you tell me why you were in the hospital that night.””
Vanessa's eyes narrowed.
“I was helping my sister.””
“By changing identification bracelets?””
“I didn't change anything.””
“Then why did the hospital records disappear?””
“Because the hospital made a mistake!””
Daniel held up the photograph of the two newborns.
“Which baby did you take?””
Vanessa looked at it.
Her face lost color.
Then she said something Daniel would remember for the rest of his life.
“I took the baby who needed me.””
Michael immediately stepped between them.
“That's an admission worth documenting.””
Vanessa shook her head.
“No. That's not what I meant.””
The police officers exchanged glances.
One of them asked her to clarify.
Vanessa refused.
Instead, she grabbed her handbag.
“I'm leaving.””
“You're not taking Sophie,” Daniel said.
She stopped at the doorway.
“Do you really think you can keep her from me?””
Daniel stared at her.
“She has spent her entire life being frightened of you.””
Vanessa's face twisted.
“You have no idea what I've sacrificed.””
Then she walked out.
That night, Daniel sat beside Ethan's bed.
The boy had heard the argument downstairs.
“Daddy?””
“I'm here.””
“Is Vanessa taking Sophie?””
“No.””
“Promise?””
Daniel took his son's hand.
“I promise I'll do everything I can to protect you both.””
Ethan looked toward Sophie, who was asleep in her crib.
“Can I tell you something?””
“Of course.””
“Vanessa used to make me call her Mommy.””
Daniel's expression tightened.
“Did you want to?””
“No.””
“Did she make you?””
Ethan nodded.
“She said if I didn't, she wouldn't let me see Sophie.””
Daniel closed his eyes.
He had missed so much.
“I'm sorry, buddy.””
Ethan reached for his father's sleeve.
“Daddy, I think Vanessa wanted Sophie to forget Mommy.””
“Why do you think that?””
“Because she took all Mommy's pictures out of Sophie's room.””
Daniel remembered the photograph in Vanessa's closet.
“What else?””
Ethan hesitated.
“She said Sophie belonged to her family now.””
Daniel leaned closer.
“Did she ever say why?””
Ethan shook his head.
Then he reached beneath his pillow and pulled out a folded piece of paper.
“I found this in her suitcase.””
Daniel unfolded it.
It was a photocopy of an email.
The sender was Vanessa.
The recipient was an unknown address.
The subject line read:
*THE GIRL IS SAFE WITH ME.*
The email contained only a few sentences.
Rebecca has no idea where the baby is. Laura is gone, and Daniel believes the child is his.
Everything is finally under control.
But Ethan is becoming a problem. He remembers too much.
Daniel read the last sentence again.
He remembers too much.
His blood ran cold.
Ethan had witnessed something.
Something Vanessa was terrified he might reveal.
“Ethan,” Daniel whispered.
“Did you ever see Vanessa do something to Sophie that you haven't told me?””
The boy stared at the floor.
Then he nodded.
“What happened?””
Ethan began twisting the edge of his blanket.
“Three months ago, Vanessa took Sophie to the hospital.””
“Why?””
“She said Sophie needed a special checkup.””
Daniel frowned.
“Did she tell you anything else?””
“She said Sophie was going to have a new family.””
Daniel felt his stomach drop.
“Did you go with them?””
“No. She told me to stay home with the housekeeper.””
“What happened when they came back?””
Ethan looked toward the door.
“Vanessa was crying. She had a white envelope. She went into her bedroom and locked the door.””
Daniel gently touched his shoulder.
“Did you see what was inside?””
Ethan nodded.
“There was a picture of a baby.””
“A baby?””
“Another little girl. She looked just like Sophie.””
Daniel stared at him.
“Are you sure?””
Ethan nodded again.
“Vanessa said, ‘If the first plan failed, we'll use the second one.’”
Daniel stood slowly.
He called Michael.
“Find out which hospital Vanessa took Sophie to three months ago. I want every appointment, every medical record, and every person who signed her in.””
Michael was already typing.
“I'll start immediately.””
Then Daniel looked at the email again.
There was a small handwritten note in the bottom corner.
A name.
*Dr. Samuel Whitmore.*
Daniel recognized it.
Whitmore had been the attending physician on the night Laura died.
He had signed the medical report declaring her death accidental.
Daniel searched his phone for the number Patricia had given him.
He called.
A man's voice answered after several rings.
“Hello?””
“Dr. Whitmore? My name is Daniel Carter.
My wife was Laura Carter. She died at St. Mary's fifteen months ago.””
Silence.
Then the doctor spoke.
“I'm sorry, Mr. Carter. I remember your wife.””
“I need to ask you about the two newborn girls.””
Another silence.
Longer this time.
Finally, Whitmore whispered:
“Mr. Carter, you need to stop investigating.””
“Why?””
“Because Vanessa wasn't the only person involved.””
Daniel gripped the phone.
“Who else was involved?””
The doctor took a shaky breath.
Then he said:
“Your wife knew the second baby wasn't Rebecca's biological child either.””
Daniel froze.
“What?””
“There were three babies that night, Mr. Carter. Not two.””
The call suddenly disconnected.
Daniel stared at his phone.
Three babies.
Three newborns.
And all this time, he had believed the mystery involved only Sophie and Rebecca's daughter.
May you like
Then his phone received a final message from an unknown number.
*You need to find the third mother before Vanessa does.*
