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CHAPTER 109
"You're not at liberty." Sophia placed both hands flat on the desk and leaned forward. "My four year old daughter had bone marrow put inside her body from someone I've never met, paid for by someone I've never spoken to, and you're telling me you're not at liberty?""The arrangement was made through proper channels. Everything was verified, tested, and approved. I assure you the donor was a match and the procedure followed every protocol.""I'm not asking about protocol. I'm asking for a name."The doctor's gaze flickered, just barely, toward the hallway behind her. It was a small thing, involuntary, the kind of glance a person makes when they're thinking about someone who isn't in the room but whose presence looms over the conversation anyway."I genuinely cannot help you with that, Mrs. Mitchell. I'm sorry."Richard stepped into the doorway. "Doctor, is there any medical reason the donor's identity should be hidden? Any complication, any risk we should know about?""None whatsoever.
CHAPTER 108
Sophia didn't sit back down after Emma fell asleep. She stood at the edge of the bed for a long moment, watching the rise and fall of her daughter's chest, and then she walked out of the ward without a sound.Richard was leaning against the corridor wall, arms folded, waiting. He straightened the moment he saw her face."What's wrong?"Sophia glanced both ways down the hallway. A nurse passed with a clipboard, heels clicking against tile, and disappeared around the corner. Sophia waited until the sound faded before she spoke."Someone came into Emma's ward today. A man. He was dressed like a patient."Richard studied her. "A man.""Emma told me just now. He said everything had been taken care of. That she didn't need to be scared anymore." Sophia's voice was low, controlled, but her fingers pressed white against her forearm where she held herself. "She said he rubbed her hair. That he felt familiar."Richard was quiet for a moment. "Sophia, she's four years old. She just came out of s
CHAPTER 107
"He was wearing patient clothes," Emma continued, seemingly unaware of her mother's sudden tension. "You know, like the hospital gown thing. He seemed nice. He talked to me for a little bit."Alexander, Sophia thought, ice flooding her veins. It has to be Alexander. He's been here. In Emma's room. Talking to my daughter without my permission."What did he say to you?" Sophia asked, her voice tight.Emma's brow furrowed as she tried to remember. "He said everything had been taken care of. That I didn't need to worry anymore. I didn't really understand what he meant.""Everything had been taken care of," Sophia repeated slowly. Her mind raced, connecting dots she didn't want to connect. The surgery paid for by an anonymous benefactor. The bone marrow donor who appeared at exactly the right time. The mysterious circumstances around all of Emma's care.It was him, she realized with absolute certainty. Alexander paid for everything. The surgery, the treatment, all of it. And now he's visit
CHAPRER 106
Emma's eyes widened as the full weight of what she'd said settled over her. The anger drained from her small face, replaced by sudden fear and regret. She reached out with both hands, clutching at her mother's sleeve desperately."Mama, I'm sorry!" Emma's voice trembled, fresh tears gathering in her eyes. "Please don't be angry with me! I didn't mean to make you upset! I'm sorry!"The panic in her daughter's voice cut through Sophia's own emotional turmoil. She looked down at Emma's tear-streaked face, at the way her small hands gripped Sophia's clothing as if afraid she might disappear, and her heart broke all over again."Oh, sweetheart," Sophia said softly, gently prying Emma's fingers loose so she could hold them properly. "No, no, no. You've got it all wrong.""But you're crying," Emma hiccupped. "And you look sad. I made you sad by asking about my father, didn't I?""Emma, listen to me," Sophia said firmly but gently. She pinched Emma's small nose affectionately, the familiar ge
CHAPTER 105
"Prison," Sophia said, deciding that partial truth was better than more lies. "He went to prison. And I... I thought it was easier for you to believe he was gone forever than to spend your childhood waiting for someone who might never come back."Emma processed this, her tears slowing slightly. "Was he a bad man? Is that why he went to prison?"The question made Sophia's throat close. How did she answer that? With the truth—that she'd believed for five years that Alexander was a monster who'd tried to assault his own stepmother? Or with the possibility that gnawed at her despite everything—that maybe, just maybe, he'd been telling the truth about being framed?"I thought he was," Sophia said finally. "For a long time, I believed he'd done terrible things. Things that hurt me and our family. That's why I told you he was dead—because to me, the man I thought I married, the father you should have had, he was dead. That person didn't exist anymore.""But he does exist," Emma said, searchi
CHAPTER 104
The hurt in Emma's voice finally penetrated Sophia's panic. She stopped, staring at her daughter's wounded expression."I didn't ask because someone told me something," Emma said, her voice trembling. "I asked because... because of how you just reacted."Sophia's mouth opened, then closed. "What?""I just asked a question," Emma continued, tears now streaming down her cheeks. "A normal question. And you... you got all weird and scared and started asking if people were telling me things." Her small chin trembled. "That means he's not dead, doesn't it? My father isn't dead. You lied to me."Oh God, Sophia thought, her stomach dropping. What have I done?"Emma, sweetheart—""You lied to me!" Emma's voice broke, somewhere between accusation and heartbreak. "All my life, you told me my father was dead! That he died before I was born! You made me believe I never had a daddy!"The words hit Sophia like physical blows. She reached for Emma, but the little girl pulled away, pressing herself ba
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