Chapter 3 - THE ILLUSION OF CAROLINE
I barely slept. At six the next morning, Elias knocked on my door. Alone. He looked like he had been dragging his hands through his hair.
“I received a response from an archival request,” Elias said, spreading papers on my kitchen table. “The hospital’s security system kept access logs. Someone used a visitor clearance card to enter the restricted nursery wing that night. Your emergency contact.”
The room became very quiet. “Who was it?” “Caroline Mercer,” Elias read. “Under relationship, it says: SISTER.”
I stared. “She wasn’t my sister. She was my best friend.” Elias shook his head. “Caroline Mercer doesn’t appear to exist. The identity we have for her was constructed.”
I walked to the window, my mind reeling. Six years. Caroline had known me for six years. She had been at every prenatal appointment.
The front door opened. Damian stepped inside with Teresa and the three children. He saw the papers. He saw the name.
“Caroline Mercer was one of Elena’s aliases,” Damian said, all the color draining from his face. “My sister used that name when she wanted privacy.”
I stumbled backward. “Why would your sister pretend to be my friend for six years?” “I don’t know,” Damian whispered.
Then, Damian’s phone rang. It was Dr. Shah from the genetics lab. He handed it to me.
“Ms. Bennett,” Dr. Shah said gently. “The results establish that you are the biological mother of all three children.”
I dropped to my knees. A sob tore from my throat as Sofia, Luca, and Matteo rushed into my arms. My babies. Alive. Over their heads, I saw Damian turn away, covering his mouth.
“There is one more thing,” Dr. Shah continued over the speaker. “We ran a comparison against the archived medical material from Elena Marchetti. The sample confirms Elena was not their mother. But... according to the analysis, she was their biological aunt. It means one of the triplets’ biological parents was Elena Marchetti’s full sibling.”
I stared at Damian. He stared back at me. The room held its breath.
May you like
“I’m her only full sibling,” Damian whispered.
Sofia reached one tiny hand toward him. And for the first time, I realized there was one question none of us had thought to ask. Who was their father?
