Chapter 8 - The Hospital RecordDaniel spent the entire night thinking about Rachel.
A secret pregnancy.
A child.
A hidden birth.
Three years of unanswered questions.
At sunrise, Marcus called him.
“I found the hospital.”
“Which one?”
“The maternity clinic where Lily was born.”
Daniel drove there with Maya and Marcus.
The clinic was small.
Private.
Old.
A receptionist searched the records.
Then frowned.
“There’s no patient under Maya Bennett.”
Maya stiffened.
“That's my name.”
The receptionist looked again.
Then her expression changed.
“There is a birth record under another surname.”
“What surname?”
She lowered her voice.
“Mercer.”
Daniel froze.
“Mercer?”
“Yes.”
“Who is the mother?”
The receptionist hesitated.
“Rachel Mercer.”
Daniel’s hands went numb.
Rachel had secretly given birth to Lily.
But when?
The receptionist opened the medical file.
Daniel leaned over.
The date was four days before Rachel’s death.
Four days.
Daniel stared at Maya.
“She gave birth four days before the accident?”
Maya nodded.
“She couldn't keep the baby because she knew someone was watching her.”
“Then why did everyone think Rachel had never been pregnant?”
Maya whispered:
“Because she told the hospital to keep the birth confidential.”
Daniel turned the page.
There was a handwritten note.
Father unavailable.
Daniel’s heart broke.
“She never told me.”
“She was trying to protect you.”
“From what?”
Maya looked at the floor.
“From the people who wanted your daughter.”
Daniel read the medical file again.
Then he saw the name of the attending physician.
Dr. Samuel Carter.
Marcus stiffened.
“What?”
“I know him.”
“From where?”
“He was the coroner who handled Rachel’s accident.”
Daniel’s eyes narrowed.
“The same man?”
Marcus nodded.
“That can’t be a coincidence.”
They found Dr. Carter at his clinic.
He was older now.
Slower.
But when he saw Daniel, he immediately understood why he had come.
“I knew this day would happen.”
Daniel slammed the birth record on the desk.
“You delivered my daughter.”
Dr. Carter closed his eyes.
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Rachel asked me not to.”
“Why?”
“Because she believed you were being watched.”
“By Michael?”
“Not just Michael.”
Daniel stared.
“Who else?”
Dr. Carter looked toward the window.
“People with influence.”
“How much influence?”
The doctor swallowed.
“Enough to make police reports disappear.”
Daniel felt cold.
“Why did Rachel die?”
Dr. Carter hesitated.
“Her accident wasn’t an accident.”
Daniel stared.
“What?”
“The brakes were damaged.”
Marcus already knew.
“We suspected sabotage.”
Dr. Carter nodded.
“And Rachel knew.”
Daniel’s voice cracked.
“Then why didn’t she tell me?”
“Because she believed the only way to protect you was to make you look innocent by keeping you ignorant.”
Daniel sat down.
All those years, he had blamed himself.
He had replayed the phone call he had made to Rachel that night.
He had wondered whether he should have stopped her from driving.
Now he knew.
Someone had murdered her.
And she had known they might come for him next.
Dr. Carter reached into a drawer.
“I kept this.”
He handed Daniel a sealed envelope.
Rachel’s handwriting.
Daniel opened it.
Inside was a single photograph.
Rachel holding baby Lily.
On the back:
She is your daughter. But she is also the key.
Daniel looked at Maya.
“What key?”
Maya whispered:
“The key to where the money is.”
Then the doctor’s phone rang.
He answered.
His face changed.
Daniel heard a voice on the other end.
The doctor dropped the phone.
“What happened?”
He looked at Daniel.
“They know you’re here.”
May you like
A second later, the front windows shattered.
Gunfire tore through the room.
