own her pale cheeks. She gripped Giles's hands with a desperate, cr
dn't even finish the sentence. It was the ultimate, unspeakable nightmare for any mother: her own flesh and blood, the child she had carri
ly wiped a tear from her jawline. "Fleming sent me a pho
ion image Fleming had transmitted, and held the glowing screen in front of his weeping w
g uncontrollably. She looked down, and h
The resemblance wasn't just a passing similarity; it was a biological mirror. Danelle was looking at a ghost of her own youth. She reached ou
eaking with a profound mix of overwhelming
nst his chest, letting her weep into his suit jacket. He held her tightly
n, her expression horrified. "Now? Her wri
Beatrice the results. If Aurelia hears about this from a tabloid leak, a rogue nurse, or a third party, it will destroy her even more. And..." He paused, his jaw tightening
y-five years of a human life wasn't a corporate asset you could just trade across a boardroom table. But if th
rridor of the clinic. The adjoining doo
berglass cast, resting on an elevated sling. She was aggressively tapping her phone with her good hand,
lanced up, immediately putting on a petulan
face was carved from absolute stone, radiating a suffocating tensi
one down, a sliver of genuine, icy unease creepi
rembling too much to speak. Giles stood at the foot of the bed, his hands gripping the metal rail. In a
antically between her mother's devastated f
al DNA test," Giles concluded, hi
plosive. "Dad, Mom... are
squeezed her hand,
"No, this is impossible! It's a mistake! Blood types aren't always accurate,
the thrashing girl into a desperate embrace.
Danelle's shoulder, her w
e. "Aurelia, listen to me. The DNA test isn't to throw you away. It's to confirm who your biological parents are. You have
e freezing in absolute shock. "Beatrice?" she repeated, her voice
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