Chapter 13: The Doctor Who Stole Our Lives
I didn't wait for Detective Harper to finish her sentence.
I ran toward the police vehicles.
“Where's the hospital?””
“Marcus, wait!”” Robert shouted.
I turned.
“Someone has my mother, my wife has twelve million dollars, and a doctor who supposedly disappeared is waiting beside the woman who helped destroy my family. I'm done waiting.””
Detective Harper ordered two officers to accompany us.
The drive to the hospital felt endless.
Robert sat beside me in the back seat.
Neither of us spoke.
Finally, he reached into his coat and pulled out a small photograph.
It showed a young man standing beside Claire.
“Your mother gave me this,” he said.
I looked at it.
The young man was Dr. Samuel Whitmore.
I stared at the photograph.
“He knew Claire?””
Robert nodded.
“He was her personal physician before she became pregnant.””
“Why would he help Daniel?””
“Money. Daniel promised him a share of the trust.””
I looked through the window.
“Then why did he disappear?””
Robert's expression darkened.
“Because he was the only person who knew what happened to Claire's original medical records.””
We arrived at the hospital shortly after midnight.
Detective Harper spoke with security while Robert and I went upstairs.
My mother's room was at the end of a quiet corridor.
A nurse stood outside.
“Are you Marcus Hayes?””
“Yes.””
“Your mother has been asking for you.””
I looked through the glass.
Eleanor was lying in bed with an oxygen tube beneath her nose.
Beside her sat an elderly man in a white coat.
His hair was silver.
His hands were folded neatly.
He looked completely ordinary.
Until he turned toward the door.
I recognized him immediately.
Samuel Whitmore.
He smiled.
“Marcus. I've been expecting you.””
I entered the room.
“Get away from my mother.””
He stood.
“There's no need to be hostile.””
I stepped between him and the bed.
“What are you doing here?””
“I've been treating Eleanor for several years.””
My mother began shaking her head.
“Marcus, don't listen to him.””
Whitmore looked disappointed.
“Eleanor, I thought we agreed you would remain quiet.””
Detective Harper entered behind me.
“Dr. Whitmore, I need you to step away from the patient.””
He raised both hands.
“Of course.””
But before he could move, my mother grabbed my wrist.
“Marcus.””
I leaned closer.
“What happened?””
She pointed toward Whitmore.
“He has the original records.””
Whitmore smiled faintly.
“Those records are not relevant anymore.””
My mother shook her head.
“Tell him about Claire.””
The doctor sighed.
“Claire was a complicated patient.””
I stepped toward him.
“You poisoned her.””
His expression didn't change.
“That's a serious accusation.””
Rachel entered the room behind Detective Harper.
She had heard enough.
“You told my mother Claire died from natural complications.””
Whitmore looked at her.
“Rachel Bennett. I wondered when you would appear.””
“You killed my sister.””
“I did no such thing.””
Rachel pulled the journal from her bag.
“My mother documented everything.””
Whitmore glanced at the pages.
Then he laughed.
“Your mother was old. Her memory was unreliable.””
Detective Harper stepped closer.
“We have medical records, payment transfers, and communications connecting you to Daniel Hayes.””
The doctor's smile faded.
“Daniel is a criminal. I am a physician.””
“That's why you're in trouble,” Harper replied.
“You used your position to alter medical records and facilitate unlawful transfers of newborn children.””
Whitmore slowly removed his glasses.
Then he looked at me.
“Do you know what your grandfather did, Marcus?””
I didn't answer.
“He built an empire on other people's suffering. Daniel simply continued what Thomas started.””
Robert stepped into the room.
“Don't you dare blame my father for your crimes.””
Whitmore turned.
“Robert Hayes. Still alive. How inconvenient.””
Robert approached him.
“You signed Claire's death certificate.””
“I signed what the hospital instructed me to sign.””
“You prescribed the medication that killed her.””
Whitmore remained silent.
Then my mother spoke.
“I watched you change the bottle.””
Everyone turned.
Eleanor was crying.
“I saw you take Claire's medication from the cabinet. You replaced it with something else.””
Whitmore's expression finally changed.
“You were mistaken.””
“I wasn't.””
My mother struggled to breathe.
“I was there. I knew what you were doing. And I let you do it.””
I stared at her.
“Why?””
She looked at me.
“Because Daniel threatened to tell everyone that Robert wasn't your father. He said if I cooperated, you would be protected.””
I stepped backward.
“You let Claire die to protect a lie?””
Eleanor began sobbing.
“I thought I could save you.””
“You didn't save me. You made me live inside the lie.””
Whitmore suddenly moved toward the door.
Detective Harper caught his arm.
“Stay where you are.””
He tried to pull away.
An officer stepped forward and restrained him.
For the first time, the doctor looked afraid.
“You can't arrest me based on an old woman's confession!””
Harper held up her phone.
“Actually, Dr. Whitmore, we just received something much more useful.””
She played an audio recording.
A man's voice filled the room.
Whitmore's voice.
Claire's death was unfortunate, but necessary. Daniel promised the payment would cover everything. The records must never be reopened.
The recording stopped.
Whitmore went completely still.
Rachel covered her mouth.
Robert closed his eyes.
My mother began crying uncontrollably.
Detective Harper read the arrest notice.
Whitmore was escorted out.
As he passed me, he stopped.
“You think you've uncovered everything?””
I stared at him.
“What else is there?””
He smiled.
“Ask Vanessa where she transferred the money.””
Then he was gone.
I turned toward my mother.
“Where is Vanessa?””
Eleanor looked frightened.
“She called me yesterday.””
“What did she say?””
“She said she was going to leave the country.””
My stomach tightened.
“Where?””
“I don't know.””
Rachel opened her phone.
“There's another message.””
She showed us an email from Vanessa.
It had been sent two hours earlier.
I know what I've done. I know you will never forgive me. But I didn't steal the money for myself.
I read the next line.
I transferred it because someone threatened Noah.
I looked toward my son, who was standing beside Robert.
“What?””
Noah stepped forward.
“What does she mean?””
Rachel continued reading.
The person threatening him has proof that he was never legally adopted. If the truth comes out, the people who raised him could lose everything.
I shook my head.
“That's impossible. His adoption was already under investigation.””
My phone vibrated.
A message from Vanessa.
*Marcus, I have the original trust documents. I know where the money went. But you need to understand something before you come looking for me.*
A second message appeared.
*I didn't arrange the kidnapping. I was trying to stop something much worse.*
Then a photograph arrived.
It showed a woman standing beside Vanessa.
The woman was holding a newborn baby.
I recognized the face.
It was Claire.
And beneath the photograph was a date.
Three years after my supposed birth.
Rachel stared at it.
“That's impossible.””
I looked at her.
“Why?””
May you like
She whispered:
“Because Claire was supposed to be dead.””
