Chapter 5 - THE TRUTH ABOUT THE BIRTH
Dr. Samuel Reed had been one of the physicians involved in Victoria's prenatal care.
According to the hospital's records, he had left the practice several months after the twins were born.
Daniel arranged a formal request for the medical documents, while I tried to reconstruct what had happened during those first terrifying days.
Grace had been born several minutes before Noah.
Both babies had required additional observation, and I remembered Victoria being exhausted and frightened.
I had been frightened too.
When a nurse mentioned a discrepancy in the paperwork, Victoria had assured me that the issue had been corrected.
Now I wondered what she had been trying to prevent me from seeing.
The hospital responded two days later.
The records showed that an administrative correction had been requested shortly after the birth. The correction itself was not necessarily improper, but the supporting documentation was incomplete.
One of the original forms had been signed by Dr. Reed.
Another carried an authorization linked to Victoria.
Daniel studied the documents.
“These records don't prove the entire story,” he said. “But they establish that someone made changes that need explaining.”
We contacted the hospital's compliance office.
They agreed to review the file.
Meanwhile, Victoria became increasingly volatile.
She accused me of invading her privacy, threatened to leave, then announced that she would take the twins to her parents' home for a few days.
I refused to agree to any informal arrangement while the legal questions remained unresolved.
“You can't keep me here,” she shouted.
“I'm not keeping you anywhere. I'm asking that we make decisions about the children safely and legally.”
“You're treating me like a criminal!”
“You tied a woman to a bed.”
She slapped the table so hard the silverware jumped.
“You have no idea what I sacrificed for this family!”
“Then tell me the truth.”
Her eyes filled with tears, but I could no longer tell whether they came from fear, anger, or genuine pain.
“You wouldn't understand.”
“Try me.”
She turned away.
That night, Daniel called.
The hospital's preliminary review had uncovered correspondence between Victoria and Dr. Reed.
Some messages concerned routine care.
Others did not.
One message, sent shortly after the twins' birth, asked whether the original records could be amended before the family received its final copies.
Dr. Reed had replied that any correction required proper documentation and approval.
Victoria's response was chilling.
My husband does not need to know about this. Just make it disappear.
The hospital was conducting a formal investigation.
Daniel warned me not to speculate about the medical issue until the review was complete.
I agreed.
Then Emily called from the hospital.
Caleb had improved enough to sit up and eat a little soup.
For the first time in days, she sounded hopeful.
“He asked whether the twins are all right,” she said. “He keeps saying he wants to meet them someday.”
I promised her that, when everyone was safe and the time was right, we would arrange it.
Before hanging up, Emily hesitated.
“Mr. Cole, there's something I never told you about the day Mrs. Cole tied me up.”
“What is it?”
“She wasn't only trying to stop me from leaving.”
Emily explained that Victoria had ordered her to remain in the nursery because a visitor was expected.
A man was coming to collect a sealed envelope from the house.
Emily had overheard Victoria say that the envelope contained the last piece of evidence needed to protect her.
“What happened to it?” I asked.
“I don't know. But after she tied me up, she went into your office.”
I looked toward the hallway.
The envelope I had found in Victoria's study had been hidden behind books.
But it had contained only the photograph and the note.
Something else was missing.
I checked the locked cabinet in my office.
Inside were the original documents for the twins' trust.
The cabinet had been opened.
The trust agreement was still there.
The medical authorization attached to it was gone.
And in its place was a new document granting Richard Cole's company broad authority to manage the twins' inheritance.
At the bottom, my name had been signed.
Again.
May you like
This time, the signature was almost perfect.
Almost.
