Chapter 7: The Other Daughter
“Tomorrow morning?”” I repeated.
Dr. Adrian Cole stood in my bedroom doorway, his hands clasped in front of him. He looked older than he had in the photograph Emily had shown me. His dark coat was damp from the rain, and his face carried the exhausted expression of a man who had rehearsed an apology a thousand times without ever finding the courage to deliver it.
Vanessa stood beside the fallen wooden box.
“You have no right to be here,” she snapped.
Adrian didn't look at her.
“Daniel deserves the truth.””
“You promised me!””
“I promised to help you protect the children. I never promised to lie forever.””
Vanessa lunged toward him.
“You said nobody would ever find out!””
“Because you told me the records had been corrected!””
“They were corrected!””
“The records were changed,” Adrian replied.
“That isn't the same thing.””
I stepped between them.
“Both of you, stop.””
My voice shook with anger.
I pointed toward the study.
“Adrian, you're going to tell me everything. Vanessa, you're going to sit down and listen.””
She stared at me as though I'd struck her.
“You can't order me around in my own home.””
“Our home,” I corrected.
“And the children deserve to know why their lives may have been built on a lie.””
For a moment, Vanessa looked as if she might scream.
Instead, she walked into the study and sat in the chair opposite my desk.
Adrian followed.
Emily remained in the doorway.
“Come here, sweetheart,” I told her.
She approached slowly and sat beside me.
I reached for her hand.
Then I looked at Adrian.
“Start with the hospital.””
He took a breath.
“Six months ago, two women gave birth at St. Catherine's within three minutes of each other. Your wife delivered a girl at 2:18 a.m. Rebecca Miller delivered another girl at 2:21 a.m.””
I glanced at Vanessa.
She stared at the carpet.
“The hospital was understaffed that night,” Adrian continued.
“There was a power interruption in the neonatal unit, and several identification records were entered manually. During the confusion, two newborn identification bracelets were placed in the wrong trays.””
“Were the babies switched?”” I demanded.
“Not immediately. The nurses noticed a discrepancy before discharge, but the records were already inconsistent. They separated the babies and requested additional testing.””
“Then why did Vanessa leave with Sophie?””
Adrian looked at her.
“Because she was told her daughter might not be biologically related to her.””
Vanessa's head snapped up.
“That is not what happened!””
Adrian's jaw tightened.
“You told me you were afraid the hospital would give your baby to another family.””
“Because they threatened to!””
“They said they needed to verify the identities of both children.””
“And I was supposed to wait while strangers decided whether I could take my own daughter home?””
I watched her closely.
There was genuine anguish in her voice.
For the first time, I understood that fear might have been part of the story.
But fear did not explain the lies that followed.
Adrian continued.
“Your wife was exhausted, frightened, and recovering from childbirth. I was the physician assisting with the identification review. I should have insisted that neither child leave until the discrepancy was resolved.””
“But you didn't.””
“No.””
“Why?””
He looked down at his hands.
“Because Vanessa asked me to give her time. She said she needed to speak to you before the hospital contacted the other family.””
Vanessa wiped her cheeks.
“I was terrified, Daniel. You were thousands of miles away. I thought if I brought Sophie home, everything would be all right.””
“You thought?””
She looked at me.
“I thought she was my daughter.””
Adrian shook his head.
“You knew there was uncertainty.””
Vanessa turned on him.
“And you knew the hospital had made the mistake! You told me the first test results were inconclusive!””
“They were.””
“So why are you acting as though I stole a child?””
Adrian's face tightened.
“Because you didn't stop when you had a chance to correct the mistake.””
Silence fell.
I leaned forward.
“What happened after Vanessa brought Sophie home?””
Adrian rubbed his forehead.
“The hospital opened an internal review. I told Vanessa the final results would take several days. She asked me to delay the paperwork until she could arrange a second test.””
“And you agreed?””
“I did.””
“Why?””
He hesitated.
“Because I made another mistake.””
“What mistake?””
“I had feelings for Vanessa.””
The room went still.
Emily's fingers tightened around mine.
I stared at him.
“You were involved with my wife?””
“Not physically,” Adrian said quickly.
“But I cared about her. We'd known each other for years. She called me because she was frightened, and I wanted to help her.””
Vanessa rose abruptly.
“That's enough!””
“No,” I said.
“Sit down.””
She remained standing.
I looked at Adrian.
“Did you father Sophie?””
He shook his head.
“No.””
“Are you certain?””
“Yes. I was never sexually involved with Vanessa.””
I studied him.
“Then why was your name on the photograph?””
Adrian looked toward the wooden box.
“Because I took that photograph. It was part of the hospital's identification review. I kept a copy because I feared the original evidence would disappear.””
“Why would it disappear?””
He looked at Vanessa.
“Because someone was already pressuring the hospital to close the investigation.””
Vanessa sank into her chair.
I felt a fresh wave of anger.
“You told me you were protecting Sophie. But you allowed me to believe Maria had endangered her. You tried to erase the security footage.
You changed the birth records. You hid evidence that could have reunited a child with her biological family.””
“I was trying to protect my daughter!””
“Which daughter?”” I shouted.
Vanessa recoiled.
I immediately regretted the words, but I couldn't take them back.
Emily began to cry silently beside me.
I turned toward her.
“I'm sorry, sweetheart.””
She shook her head.
“It's okay, Dad.””
It wasn't.
Nothing about this was okay.
Adrian opened his briefcase and removed a sealed envelope.
“These are the hospital's preliminary findings. Both children are alive, and the Millers have been informed that the identification records are under review. They've agreed to cooperate with independent testing.””
I took the envelope.
Inside were copies of the records, along with a letter requesting that both families attend a meeting with the hospital's legal representative.
The appointment was scheduled for the following morning.
I looked up.
“You said the Millers are bringing their daughter here.””
“Rebecca asked to meet you before the formal appointment,” Adrian explained.
“She wants to see the family that may have been involved in the error.””
“The family that may have been involved?”” I repeated.
“We didn't know anything.””
“I know. But Rebecca doesn't know that yet.””
Vanessa pressed a tissue against her mouth.
“I can't face her.””
“You should have thought of that before you lied,” I said.
Her eyes flashed.
“You think this is easy for me?””
“No. I think you've made it much harder for everyone else.””
She stared at me for a long moment.
Then she turned toward Adrian.
“Tell him about the second test.””
Adrian's face changed.
“What second test?””
“The one you arranged after Sophie came home.””
I looked between them.
“What is she talking about?””
Adrian slowly sat back.
“Vanessa, you told me you never received the results.””
“I did.””
His face went pale.
“You told me the hospital had lost them.””
“I lied.””
The confession fell into the room like a stone.
I stood.
“What did the test show?””
Vanessa began to tremble.
“It showed that Sophie wasn't biologically related to me.””
Emily gasped.
I gripped the desk.
“What?””
Vanessa wiped her face.
“The test showed that the baby I brought home wasn't mine.””
For several seconds, I couldn't speak.
Adrian closed his eyes.
“You knew,” he whispered.
Vanessa nodded.
“I knew.””
The silence was unbearable.
I had imagined a clerical error, a confused nurse, an administrative failure.
But Vanessa had received evidence that Sophie wasn't her biological child.
And she had hidden it.
“How long?”” I asked.
“Five months.””
Five months.
For five months, she'd known there was another family whose child might be living in our house.
For five months, she'd watched me call Sophie my daughter without telling me what she knew.
For five months, she'd allowed the truth to remain buried.
“Why?”” I whispered.
Vanessa looked at me through her tears.
“Because I loved her.””
I shook my head.
“Then you should have helped us find her family.””
“She was my baby in every way that mattered!””
“But she might not have been the baby you gave birth to!””
Vanessa covered her ears.
“Stop!””
I stepped back.
For the first time, I understood that her love for Sophie might be genuine.
But love had become something possessive in Vanessa's hands. She had decided that because she loved the child in her arms, she had the right to control every fact surrounding that child's life.
Even if it meant depriving another mother of the truth.
I turned toward Adrian.
“What about the baby the Millers brought home?””
He hesitated.
“Rebecca believes she's raising her biological daughter. But until the independent testing is complete, nobody should assume anything.””
I looked at the photograph again.
Two bassinets.
Two bracelets.
Two families.
And two little girls who had done nothing wrong.
Then my phone rang.
The hospital's legal representative was calling.
I answered.
“Mr. Whitmore,” a woman said, “I'm calling to confirm tomorrow's appointment. There's been an important development.””
My stomach tightened.
“What development?””
“The Millers have provided additional medical records. Based on those records, we believe we can establish the children's identities more quickly than expected.””
I looked at Vanessa.
She was staring at the phone.
The woman continued.
“However, there's one issue we need to discuss before the meeting.””
“What issue?””
A pause.
Then she said, “The biological father listed on Rebecca Miller's original medical file is not her husband.””
My fingers went numb.
I looked at Adrian.
He had gone completely still.
The woman continued.
“We need you to bring any relevant paternity records you may have. Because if the identification discrepancy is confirmed, the results could affect more than the children's birth records.””
I slowly lowered the phone.
May you like
Vanessa began to cry again.
And for the first time, I wondered whether the hospital's mistake had been the beginning of the nightmare—or whether someone had deliberately created the confusion because there was something else they needed to hide.
