Chapter 8: My Sister's Secret
For several seconds, I couldn't hear anything.
The image remained frozen on the computer screen.
Olivia.
My younger sister.
The person who had held my hand during labor.
The person who had brought me food when I was recovering.
The person who had helped me raise Ethan and Noah.
I shook my head.
“No.””
Daniel looked at me.
“Nia?””
“That's impossible.””
Thomas leaned back.
“I'm sorry.””
I stared at the image.
“Why was my sister there?””
Thomas opened another file.
“The footage shows her entering the hospital at 2:51 a.m. She remained for approximately eleven minutes.””
I gripped the desk.
“Did she take one of my babies?””
Thomas shook his head.
“I don't know. The recording doesn't establish that.””
“Then what does it establish?””
“That she met with Dr. Mercer and received an envelope from Margaret Carter.””
Daniel looked sick.
“What was in the envelope?””
Thomas opened a scanned document.
“A payment authorization.””
The amount was $40,000.
The recipient was Olivia Bennett.
My sister's married name.
I stepped backward.
“No.””
Daniel moved toward me.
I raised my hand again.
“Don't.””
Thomas closed the folder.
“Mrs. Carter, I don't know what your sister's involvement was. I only know that she received money and was present during the incident.””
I stared at the screen.
“Can I have a copy?””
“Of course.””
He transferred the files to a new drive.
Then he handed me a second document.
“This was attached to the original payment authorization.””
I looked down.
It was a handwritten statement.
The younger child will remain with the mother. The older child will be transferred under the private custody arrangement.
I stopped breathing.
Ethan.
Noah.
They had planned to separate my twins.
Daniel grabbed the document.
“Who approved this?””
Thomas pointed to the signature.
“Richard Carter.””
Daniel's face twisted.
He turned toward the wall and struck it with his palm.
“My father tried to steal one of my sons.””
Thomas said nothing.
I looked at the date again.
November 18.
The day I gave birth.
The day I held both babies in my arms.
The day I thought everything had finally worked out.
I suddenly remembered something.
One of the nurses had told me that Ethan needed additional monitoring.
She had taken him away for approximately twenty minutes.
When he returned, he had been wrapped in a different blanket.
I had assumed there had been a simple administrative mistake.
Now I wondered whether someone had been trying to take him.
I sat down.
Thomas placed a glass of water in front of me.
“Mrs. Carter, there's one more thing.””
I looked up.
“What?””
“The original hospital records show that your sister signed a temporary visitor authorization.””
“Why?””
“To gain access to the maternity ward.””
Daniel's expression hardened.
“Did she know about the plan?””
Thomas hesitated.
“That's the question you need to ask her.””
I called Olivia from the parking lot.
She answered cheerfully.
“Hey, sis. Everything okay?””
I closed my eyes.
“Where were you on November 18, five years ago?””
Silence.
Then she laughed nervously.
“What?””
“Where were you at 2:51 in the morning?””
“Nia, what's going on?””
“Were you at Westbrook Women's Clinic?””
Her breathing changed.
“Why are you asking me that?””
“Because I saw the security footage.””
Nothing.
Not a word.
I tightened my grip on the phone.
“Olivia?””
She whispered, “Where did you get that?””
I almost dropped the phone.
“You were there?””
“Nia, please listen.””
“Did you take money from Margaret Carter?””
She started crying.
“I can explain.””
“Did you?””
A long silence.
Then she whispered:
“Yes.””
My vision blurred.
I leaned against the car.
“How much?””
“Forty thousand.””
I closed my eyes.
“What did you do for it?””
Olivia began sobbing.
“I didn't know they were going to hurt the babies.””
I couldn't speak.
“I swear, Nia. I didn't know.””
“Then tell me what you did.””
She sniffed.
“Margaret called me. She said you were in danger of losing custody because Daniel was divorcing you. She said the family wanted to make sure the babies were financially protected.””
“Protected?””
“She told me one of the boys needed special medical attention. She said they were arranging a temporary transfer.””
I felt sick.
“Which boy?””
“I don't know.””
“You don't know?””
“They wouldn't tell me.””
I pressed my forehead against the car window.
“Olivia, did you hand one of my children to someone?””
“No!””
Her answer came too quickly.
I pulled the phone away, then brought it back.
“Tell me the truth.””
“I signed a document allowing Dr. Mercer to move Ethan for additional testing. That's all.””
“Why Ethan?””
“Because he was the smaller one.””
I remembered the birth records.
Ethan had weighed four ounces less than Noah.
My hands began shaking.
“And the money?””
Olivia cried harder.
“Margaret said it was compensation for helping the family avoid a custody dispute.””
“You accepted forty thousand dollars to help strangers access my newborn son?””
“I thought I was helping you!””
I laughed bitterly.
“Helping me?””
“Nia, I was scared. Margaret told me if I refused, she would make sure Daniel's lawyers took both babies away from you.””
I closed my eyes.
“Why didn't you tell me?””
“I was ashamed.””
“For five years?””
She didn't answer.
Then she whispered something that made my stomach drop.
“There's something else.””
I straightened.
“What?””
“The night you gave birth, I saw Margaret arguing with a nurse outside the nursery.””
“About what?””
“She wanted Ethan.””
I stopped breathing.
“Why?””
“Because she said he was the firstborn. She said the trust belonged to him.””
I looked through the windshield.
Daniel was standing beside the car.
He could see my expression.
I whispered, “What happened next?””
“Dr. Mercer took him into another room. When he came back, he gave me an envelope and told me to leave.””
“Did you see Ethan?””
“No.””
“Did you see where he went?””
Olivia's voice broke.
“I saw a woman waiting near the private elevator.””
“Who?””
She hesitated.
Then she said:
“Vanessa.””
I lowered the phone.
Daniel had heard the last word.
His face went completely white.
“Vanessa?””
I nodded.
He took the phone from my hand.
“Olivia, this is Daniel. Tell me exactly what you just said.””
Olivia began crying again.
“Daniel, please. I never meant for any of this to happen.””
“Was Vanessa at the hospital that night?””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
“I don't know. Margaret told me she was helping arrange everything.””
Daniel closed his eyes.
He looked as if he might collapse.
“Did she take Ethan?””
“I don't know.””
“Olivia!””
“I swear I don't know!””
Daniel ended the call.
For a moment, he stood motionless.
Then he turned toward me.
“Nia, I had no idea.””
I stared at him.
“Your family knew where my son was.””
He nodded.
“And you spent five years believing I had abandoned you.””
His eyes filled.
“I know.””
“You let me raise those boys believing nobody in your family cared whether they lived or died.””
He looked down.
“I know.””
I opened the car door.
“Then find out what happened to my son.””
Daniel nodded.
“I will.””
I looked at him.
“Not your son. My son.””
He flinched.
I got into the car.
That evening, I returned to Olivia's house.
The boys were asleep.
She was waiting at the kitchen table.
Her eyes were swollen.
A stack of old photographs lay in front of her.
“Nia.””
I didn't sit.
“Tell me everything.””
She nodded.
Then she began speaking.
“Margaret contacted me two days before your delivery. She said the Carter family was worried about Daniel's future. She offered me money to help with a private arrangement.””
“What arrangement?””
“She said one of the boys would be placed with a trusted family temporarily. She said it was necessary because the trust could only be protected if the firstborn was registered separately.””
I stared at her.
“And you believed that?””
“I was twenty-nine, Nia. I was drowning in debt. My husband had just lost his job. Margaret promised the arrangement would last only a few weeks.””
“So you accepted the money.””
“Yes.””
“And when you realized they were separating the twins?””
Olivia looked down.
“I panicked. I told Margaret I wanted out.””
“What did she say?””
“She told me it was already done.””
My stomach tightened.
“What does that mean?””
Olivia reached into her handbag.
She pulled out a folded piece of paper.
It was a photograph of a hospital wristband.
The name printed on it was Ethan Carter.
But beneath the name was a second line.
*Temporary Guardian: Vanessa Reed.*
I stared at it.
“Where did you get this?””
“Margaret gave it to me the next morning. She said Ethan had been transferred to a private medical facility.””
“Which facility?””
Olivia shook her head.
“She wouldn't tell me.””
I looked at the wristband.
Then I looked at my sister.
“You knew where my son was?””
“I didn't know where he was after that night.””
“But you knew he had been taken.””
She began crying again.
I turned toward the hallway.
Ethan was asleep in the bedroom.
Alive.
Healthy.
Beside his brother.
I had spent five years protecting both boys from the world.
And my own sister had helped someone separate them.
I picked up the wristband photograph.
“Olivia, I need you to understand something.””
She looked up.
“You are not going to be alone with my children again until I know everything.””
She nodded through her tears.
“I understand.””
I walked toward the door.
Then my phone vibrated.
An unknown number.
One message.
If you want to know what really happened to Ethan, stop asking Olivia. Ask Vanessa why she brought a baby home five years ago.
I read it twice.
May you like
Then another message appeared.
And ask Daniel why he never noticed.
