Chapter 10: The Woman Who Carried the Secret
Caroline couldn't move.
The woman standing in Margaret's hallway had the same dark eyes, the same narrow chin, and the same silver crescent necklace as the woman in the photograph. Even the small beauty mark beneath her left eye matched.
Sarah Reed looked at Caroline with the exhausted expression of someone who had rehearsed an apology for eight years and never found the courage to deliver it.
“Don't come any closer,” Caroline said.
Sarah stopped.
“I understand.””
“No, you don't.”” Caroline pulled Ava behind her.
“You carried my sister. You helped Richard steal her, and now you expect me to stand here and listen to an explanation?””
Sarah's face crumpled.
“I never wanted any of this to happen.””
“Then why did it?””
Sarah glanced at Margaret.
Her sister-in-law lowered her eyes.
Eleanor stepped between Caroline and the stranger.
“Start at the beginning. And don't leave anything out.””
Sarah nodded and walked into the living room. She moved slowly, favoring her right leg, and sat in an armchair beside the fireplace.
“Eight years ago, Richard approached me with a proposal,” she began.
“He told me his company was developing treatments for children with rare genetic conditions. He said my medical history made me an ideal candidate to carry a child whose cells could help advance the research.””
Caroline's jaw tightened.
“You agreed to become a surrogate.””
“Yes.””
“Without telling Thomas?””
Sarah looked down.
“He knew I was helping with a medical program. He didn't know Richard was planning to use the child as part of an experiment.””
“That's convenient.””
“I know how it sounds.””
“It sounds like you sold a baby to a rich man.””
Sarah flinched.
Eleanor raised a hand.
“Caroline.””
“No, Mother. Everyone keeps saying they were frightened, everyone keeps saying they had no choice. But my daughter was the one who paid for their choices.””
Sarah swallowed hard.
“You're right.””
The admission took some of the anger out of Caroline's next breath, though not the pain.
Sarah continued.
“When Elizabeth was born, Richard told me the child would be transferred to a private clinic for observation. I asked to see her before she left. He refused. He said the hospital had strict confidentiality rules.””
“Did you believe him?”” Eleanor asked.
“Not completely. But by then, Thomas had discovered that Richard was falsifying medical records. He told me we needed to get away. Before we could leave, Richard's men came to our house.””
Sarah rubbed her hands together.
“They took Thomas. They took Michael. They told me both were dead.””
Caroline's expression softened despite herself.
“What happened to you?””
“Margaret helped me escape. She hid me here and gave me a new identity. I was told that if I ever contacted the authorities, Richard would kill my family.””
Margaret finally looked up.
“I thought I was saving her life.””
“You were also helping him hide,” Eleanor said.
Margaret nodded miserably.
“I know.””
Sarah reached into her coat and produced a small photograph.
It showed a little girl of about eight standing in a garden, her dark hair tied with a red ribbon. She wore a white dress and held a stuffed rabbit.
Ava stepped closer.
“Is that Lizzy?””
Sarah nodded.
“That's Elizabeth.””
Ava stared at the picture.
“She looks like me.””
“She does,” Caroline whispered.
The resemblance was undeniable. The same dark eyes, the same shape of face, and the same small dimple in the left cheek.
Ava touched the edge of the photograph.
“Does she know about me?””
Sarah hesitated.
“She knows she has a sister.””
Ava looked up sharply.
“Then why hasn't she come to find me?””
“Because Richard told her that you were dangerous.””
Caroline made a furious sound.
“What?””
“He told Elizabeth that her biological family had abandoned her. He said her sister had died shortly after birth and that anyone who tried to contact her would put her at risk.””
Ava's eyes filled with tears.
“I'm not dangerous.””
Sarah leaned forward.
“I know, sweetheart.””
“Then why did he say that?””
“Because he wanted you separated.””
Eleanor studied the photograph.
“Why?””
Sarah looked at her.
“Because Richard believed the two girls together could expose his entire operation.””
She reached into her coat again and pulled out a folded document.
“This is a genetic report. Richard commissioned it shortly after the girls were born. It shows that Ava and Elizabeth share a rare inherited marker through Caroline and Thomas's family lines.””
Eleanor frowned.
“What does that have to do with his research?””
“Richard believed the marker could predict how certain experimental treatments would affect a person's body. He wanted to prove that the combination of those inherited traits could produce a unique medical response.””
Caroline stared at her.
“You mean he used my children as test subjects?””
“He intended to.””
“Did he?””
Sarah's silence answered before she spoke.
“I don't know how far the experiments went.””
Caroline turned away, fighting for breath.
Ava slipped her hand into her mother's.
“Mommy, am I sick?””
Caroline immediately knelt.
“No, sweetheart. Nothing in that report means you're sick.””
“Then why does Grandpa want me?””
Caroline brushed the hair from Ava's forehead.
“Because he thinks people belong to him if he can use them. But you don't belong to anyone except yourself.””
Ava nodded, though she still looked frightened.
Eleanor turned to Sarah.
“Where is Elizabeth now?””
Sarah took a long breath.
“At a private residential clinic in Vermont. Richard calls it a school for gifted children. She has doctors, tutors, and everything money can buy.””
“Except her family,” Caroline said.
Sarah lowered her head.
“Yes.””
“Can we get her out?””
“Not without a plan. The clinic is guarded, and Richard has legal authority over the facility. He arranged Elizabeth's records under another name.””
Eleanor's eyes narrowed.
“Then we'll challenge the guardianship.””
“Richard has judges, doctors, and politicians in his pocket,” Sarah replied.
“He'll claim you're trying to abduct a child who isn't related to you.””
“She is my granddaughter.””
“Can you prove that?””
Eleanor looked at the genetic report.
“Yes.””
Sarah shook her head.
“Not before he moves her.””
A phone vibrated on the coffee table.
Daniel picked it up and checked the screen.
“It's a message from an unknown number.””
He read it silently, then looked at Caroline.
“It's for you.””
Caroline took the phone.
The message contained a photograph of Elizabeth sitting beside a window, holding the same stuffed rabbit from Sarah's picture.
Beneath it were seven words:
*YOUR DAUGHTER WILL BE MOVED TOMORROW MORNING.*
Caroline's face went white.
“Where did this come from?””
Daniel checked the sender information.
“An encrypted account. No location data.””
Sarah rose abruptly.
“Richard knows we're here.””
Eleanor turned toward Margaret.
“How?””
Margaret looked terrified.
“I don't know.””
But Sarah was staring at the front window.
“He doesn't need to know where we are,” she whispered.
“He only needs to know that I spoke to you.””
A loud knock sounded at the door.
Everyone froze.
Then a voice called from outside.
“Federal agents! Open up!””
Daniel moved toward the window and looked through the curtain.
His face darkened.
“They're wearing federal badges.””
“Are they real?”” Eleanor asked.
“I can't tell from here.””
Caroline grabbed Ava's hand.
Sarah whispered, “If those are Richard's men, they'll take the child.””
Daniel drew his weapon but kept it pointed toward the floor.
“Everyone stay back.””
The knocking grew louder.
“Open the door immediately!””
Eleanor looked at the genetic report, then at the photograph of Elizabeth.
They had less than twelve hours before Richard moved her granddaughter.
And now someone was at the door pretending to be the law.
Sarah turned toward Caroline.
“There's one thing I haven't told you.””
Caroline's eyes flashed.
“Now?””
Sarah nodded, tears spilling down her face.
“Elizabeth isn't the only child Richard kept at that clinic.””
She glanced toward Ava.
“He has been searching for another child with the same genetic marker.””
The front door shook under a violent blow.
May you like
Sarah whispered the name of the child Richard had been searching for.
“Peter.””
