Chapter 4: The Price of a Child
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
The hotel room seemed to shrink around me.
My mother sat beneath the fluorescent lights, holding the photograph of my father and the woman named Claire. Her fingers trembled so badly that the paper kept slipping.
I stared at her.
“What did you just say?””
Evelyn closed her eyes.
“Your father didn't adopt you from Claire.””
“You said he bought me.””
“Marcus—”
“Who bought me? From whom?””
She pressed the photograph against her chest.
“Claire's mother.””
I stepped backward.
Detective Harris quietly closed the door.
“Mrs. Carter,” she said, “I need you to explain exactly what you know.””
My mother nodded, but her eyes remained on me.
“Claire was twenty-two when she became pregnant. Her mother, Margaret, worked for your father's company. She was struggling financially, and Claire's father had abandoned them.””
I swallowed.
“What does that have to do with me?””
“Margaret approached Daniel. She told him Claire was unable to raise a child and offered to arrange a private adoption.””
“An adoption?””
Evelyn shook her head.
“That's what Daniel believed at first. But Margaret demanded money. A substantial amount.””
“How much?””
“Two hundred thousand dollars.””
I stared at her.
My father had paid someone two hundred thousand dollars for a baby?
“Did Claire know?””
“I don't know. Daniel never told me the entire story.””
Detective Harris leaned forward.
“Was there a legal adoption?””
Evelyn hesitated.
“That's what I thought. Your father showed me papers. But after his death, I discovered inconsistencies.””
“What inconsistencies?””
“The dates didn't match. Some signatures were different. Your birth certificate had been amended, but the original record was missing.””
I rubbed my forehead.
“Why didn't you investigate?””
“Because I was afraid.””
“Of what?””
She finally looked at me.
“Of losing you.””
Her voice cracked.
“You were six months old when Daniel brought you home. I held you, Marcus. I fed you.
I watched your first steps. I stayed awake when you had fevers. I was there when you lost your first tooth.””
Tears ran down her cheeks.
“I didn't give birth to you, but I have never loved you as anything other than my son.””
I wanted to comfort her.
I wanted to tell her nothing could change what she had done for me.
But my mind was filled with questions.
Who was my biological mother?
Why had my father paid for me?
And why was Vanessa willing to kill to keep the truth buried?
Detective Harris's phone rang.
She answered, listened, and frowned.
“What hospital?””
A pause.
“Keep the woman there. We're coming.””
She ended the call.
“Claire is at St. Mary's Hospital. She says Vanessa arrived with Richard Cole.””
I grabbed my jacket.
“Let's go.””
“Marcus,” Detective Harris warned, “you need to remain calm. We don't know whether Claire is telling the truth.””
“I've had enough people telling me what I don't know.””
Evelyn stood slowly.
“I'm coming.””
“No, Mom. You need medical attention.””
She shook her head.
“I have spent thirty years watching people make decisions about your life without telling you the truth. I'm not staying behind now.””
I couldn't argue with her.
Twenty-five minutes later, we arrived at St. Mary's.
The hospital entrance smelled of disinfectant and burnt coffee. A television played silently above the reception desk.
A nurse directed us toward the private waiting area.
I spotted Richard immediately.
He stood near the windows in his charcoal suit, speaking into his phone.
Vanessa was beside him.
She had changed out of her wedding dress.
Now she wore a cream-colored blouse and dark trousers.
When she saw me, she stopped talking.
“Marcus.””
I walked toward her.
“What are you doing here?””
She glanced at Detective Harris.
“I came to see someone.””
“Claire?””
Her jaw tightened.
“She's unstable.””
Richard ended his phone call.
“Marcus, this is not the place.””
I stepped toward him.
“You knew about my father's secret.””
He sighed.
“Your father was a complicated man.””
“You gave Vanessa a second will.””
“I gave her documents that were legally discovered.””
“Then why did you leave the hotel?””
Richard adjusted his cufflinks.
“Because I have business responsibilities.””
Detective Harris stepped between us.
“Mr. Cole, we'd like you to accompany us for questioning.””
Richard smiled faintly.
“Certainly. My attorney will be happy to arrange a meeting.””
A door opened behind him.
A nurse stepped out.
“Mr. Carter?””
I turned.
“Claire is ready to see you.””
Vanessa immediately moved.
“I need to speak with her first.””
The nurse shook her head.
“I'm sorry. She specifically requested Marcus.””
I followed the nurse down the corridor.
My mother walked beside me.
At the end of the hallway, a woman sat on a hospital bed.
She was in her early fifties, with dark hair streaked with silver. Her face was thinner than the woman in the photograph, but her eyes were unmistakable.
The same eyes.
The same expression.
She looked at me.
And began crying.
“Marcus?””
I couldn't speak.
She reached toward me, then stopped.
“I don't know whether I'm allowed to hug you.””
I stood beside the bed.
“Who are you?””
“My name is Claire Bennett.””
She wiped her cheeks.
“And I'm the woman who gave birth to you.””
I looked at her hands.
They were trembling.
“Why did you let my father take me?””
Her face crumpled.
“I didn't.””
“What?””
“I never agreed to give you away.””
My mother covered her mouth.
Claire continued.
“My mother told me you had died during delivery. She said there had been complications and that the hospital couldn't save you.””
I felt the blood drain from my face.
“Then how did my father get me?””
Claire looked at Evelyn.
“Because your father discovered the truth six months later.””
“What truth?””
“That I was still looking for my baby.””
She opened the bedside drawer and removed a small photograph.
It showed a newborn wrapped in a white blanket.
A hospital bracelet was visible around his tiny wrist.
On the bracelet were two words.
*Baby Bennett.*
Claire pressed the photograph into my hand.
“I found your father's private investigator after he contacted me. He told me Daniel had raised a little boy who was born on the same day as my son.””
I looked at the photograph.
My hands shook.
“Did you ever see me?””
“Once.””
“When?””
“When you were three.””
She swallowed.
“I stood across the street from your school. I watched you run toward a man I recognized from the photographs. Your father.””
I stared at her.
“Why didn't you come forward?””
“Because Richard threatened me.””
She looked toward the doorway.
“He told me if I approached you, he would make sure I lost everything.””
Detective Harris stepped closer.
“What exactly did Richard threaten?””
Claire reached beneath her pillow.
She pulled out a folded piece of paper.
“He gave me this.””
I opened it.
It was a photocopy of an old financial transfer.
The amount was $200,000.
The recipient was Margaret Bennett.
The sender was Daniel Carter.
But something else caught my attention.
The transfer had been approved by a second signature.
Richard Cole.
And beside his name was a handwritten note.
*Payment for delivery. No further contact.*
I looked up.
“Delivery?””
Claire nodded.
“My mother didn't just arrange an adoption. She sold information about my pregnancy, falsified the hospital records, and handed you over to your father.””
“Why?””
Claire's eyes filled again.
“Because she was being blackmailed.””
Before I could ask another question, someone shouted from the corridor.
“Stop her!””
A nurse rushed past the open door.
Then came the sound of running footsteps.
Detective Harris drew closer to the hallway.
I looked through the doorway.
May you like
Vanessa was running toward the emergency exit.
And in her hand was Claire's hospital file.
