Chapter 5
The next morning, I asked Dr. Ellis to sit with me before anyone else entered the room.
I wanted to understand every inaccurate entry in my medical record.
Not just the frightening ones.
All of them.
She brought a printed summary of the entries under review.
I held a pen in my trembling hand.
"Can we go through them one by one?"
She nodded.
"Of course."
The first entry said I had missed two prenatal appointments without explanation.
That wasn't true.
I had attended one at a different time because Vanessa told me the schedule changed.
The other had been canceled without my knowledge.
I wrote that down.
The second entry described frequent emotional outbursts.
I stared at it.
"What does that even mean?"
Dr. Ellis looked at the source information.
"It appears to have originated from a family report rather than a clinical observation."
I swallowed.
"Can that be corrected?"
She explained the hospital's amendment process and how disputed information would be clearly identified while it was investigated.
I nodded.
The third entry concerned medication use.
The one I'd never reported.
I shook my head.
"I've never taken that."
Dr. Ellis nodded.
"We've documented your statement and are verifying the source."
Then she looked at me.
"Serena, I want you to know that we're making medical decisions based on our own assessments and verified information."
Tears filled my eyes.
"Thank you."
She smiled gently.
"You're welcome."
When she left, I sat quietly for a long time.
I had spent months wondering whether I was losing my mind.
Adrian called me forgetful.
Diane called me unstable.
Vanessa said pregnancy hormones were making me confused.
Now there was evidence that information around me had been changed.
And I'd been the one blamed for noticing.
Dad arrived shortly afterward.
He found me sitting beside the window.
"How are you feeling?"
I took a breath.
"Angry."
He nodded.
"That's understandable."
I looked at him.
"I want to know why."
He sat beside me.
"We're getting closer."
Angela had spoken with the hospital's privacy office.
The internal investigation was examining several unusual access events.
Vanessa had been placed on administrative leave while the hospital reviewed her involvement.
I felt a strange mixture of relief and sadness.
Vanessa had once called me her sister.
She'd helped plan my baby shower.
She'd brought little pink shoes for our daughter.
And now she might have helped create false records about me.
I looked at Dad.
"Do you think she hates me?"
He sighed.
"I don't know."
I swallowed.
"Then why would she do this?"
Dad's expression hardened.
"Sometimes people choose loyalty to the wrong person over doing what's right."
I thought about Diane.
The way Vanessa followed her everywhere.
The way Adrian always looked toward his mother before answering difficult questions.
They were all afraid of losing Diane's approval.
And somehow, I'd become the person they were willing to sacrifice.
That afternoon, Angela arrived with another folder.
She sat beside my bed.
"Serena, we've identified a financial connection that deserves investigation."
I frowned.
"What connection?"
She opened the folder.
"Adrian and Diane have been communicating with a private financial adviser named Leonard Price."
I stared at her.
"I know that name."
Dad looked toward me.
"From where?"
I thought for a moment.
Then remembered.
"Leonard came to our house about two months ago."
Angela sat straighter.
"What happened?"
"He said he was helping Adrian review insurance and estate-planning options."
I swallowed.
"Diane was there too."
Angela nodded.
"Did you sign anything?"
I shook my head.
"Not that day."
Then I paused.
"At least, I don't think so."
I hated how uncertain I sounded.
But so many documents had been placed in front of me during the pregnancy.
Insurance forms.
Hospital forms.
Baby registration paperwork.
I'd trusted my husband to explain them.
Now I was questioning everything.
Angela continued.
"Leonard appears to have prepared the proposed family trust and the disputed caregiver paperwork."
My stomach tightened.
"Both?"
She nodded.
"He also communicated with someone who had access to hospital administrative records."
I covered my mouth.
"Vanessa?"
"That's one possibility investigators are examining."
I stared at the ceiling.
The pieces were beginning to fit.
Adrian had wanted control over financial arrangements.
Diane wanted control over our daughter.
Vanessa had access to hospital systems.
Leonard prepared documents.
And I was the person they needed to portray as incapable.
I felt sick.
"Was this all planned?"
Angela answered carefully.
"The records suggest coordination. We still need to establish what each person knew and intended."
I nodded.
I wanted the truth.
Not assumptions.
Not revenge based on anger.
Real evidence.
But even without the full explanation, one thing was clear.
My husband had betrayed my trust.
That evening, Adrian called from a different number.
I almost ignored it.
Then I decided I wanted to hear what he'd say.
Angela had advised me not to discuss the legal issues without counsel.
So I answered only to address our immediate family situation.
"Hello?"
Adrian sounded exhausted.
"Serena."
I closed my eyes.
"Adrian."
He took a shaky breath.
"I miss you."
My throat tightened.
For six years, those words had meant comfort.
Now they sounded strange.
"What do you want?"
He was silent.
Then he whispered, "I want to see you."
I looked at my stomach.
Our daughter moved gently.
I placed a hand over her.
"I'm not ready."
Adrian sighed.
"Serena, I'm your husband."
"I know."
"Then why are you treating me like a criminal?"
My chest tightened.
I took a breath.
"Because you stood there while your mother hit me."
He went silent.
I continued.
"Because you helped create documents saying I couldn't care for our baby."
His voice hardened.
"You don't understand those documents."
"Then explain them through Angela."
He exhaled sharply.
"Your father is controlling you."
I almost laughed.
There it was.
The same accusation.
Whenever I made a decision Adrian didn't like, he blamed someone else.
I looked toward Dad sitting beside the window.
He hadn't said a word.
He was letting me speak.
I turned back to the phone.
"Adrian, I made this decision."
Silence.
Then he whispered, "You don't know what Mother is capable of."
My stomach tightened.
"What?"
He hesitated.
"Nothing."
I sat straighter.
"Adrian."
His breathing changed.
"Serena, please."
"What is your mother capable of?"
For a moment, I heard nothing.
Then he said something that made my blood run cold.
"She's already promised someone your baby."
I stopped breathing.
"What?"
The line went silent.
Then Adrian disconnected.
I stared at the phone.
My hands began shaking.
Dad stood.
"Serena?"
I looked at him.
My voice was barely audible.
"He said Diane promised someone my daughter."
Dad's face changed.
I pressed both hands over my stomach.
And suddenly, every false medical entry, every forged form, and every secret meeting became part of a nightmare far bigger than I'd imagined.
Someone had been planning my daughter's future.
May you like
Without me.
Before she was even born.
