Chapter 2 - The Double Betrayal
I pulled Noah close to me, my tears soaking his hair. "What is it, sweetie? What else did you see?"
Noah looked at Daniel, then back to me. "Daddy helped Grandma."
The words felt like a physical blow to my chest. I stared at Daniel. The silence that followed was deafening. Even the police officer who had stayed behind to take my statement paused, his pen hovering over his notepad.
"Noah, what are you saying?" Daniel stammered, taking a step backward. His hands were shaking violently. "I didn't do anything. I was down at the cafeteria getting coffee! You saw me!"
"No," Noah said, his young voice steady with the absolute certainty only a child could possess. "Before we came to the hospital, I heard you talking to Grandma in the kitchen. She gave you a little bottle and told you to make sure the nurses didn't see it. You put it in your jacket pocket."
My eyes slowly drifted to the chair in the corner of the room. Slung over the back of it was Daniel’s heavy tweed jacket.
"Daniel," I whispered, the word tasting like ash in my mouth. "Tell me he’s lying. Tell me our son is wrong."
Daniel didn't answer. He looked at the jacket, then at the door, his eyes darting like a trapped animal. He made a sudden movement toward the chair, but Officer Ramirez was faster. The officer tackled Daniel to the ground, pinning his arms behind his back.
"Get off me! I didn't know what it was!" Daniel screamed, his face pressed against the cold linoleum floor. "She told me it was a homeopathic remedy! She said Evelyn’s breastmilk wasn't nutritious enough, that the baby needed a supplement! I swear to God, I didn't know it was poison!"
The officer reached into the pocket of the tweed jacket and pulled out a small, amber glass vial with a dropper. It was empty, but the label had been hastily torn off. Only a few letters remained: ...IDE.
"Daniel, you monster," I sobbed, the pain in my chest so intense I could barely breathe. "That was your son. Your own flesh and blood."
"Evelyn, please! You have to believe me!" Daniel cried as they hauled him to his feet and cuffed him. "My mother... she gets in my head. She said your family has a history of genetic illnesses, that she just wanted to protect our future. She said the supplement would just make him stronger!"
"She told me my bloodline was a curse," I said, my voice dead and cold. "And you stood there. You turned your back on me while she said it. You knew."
Claire, who had been quietly trying to slip out of the room during the chaos, was stopped by the second officer at the door.
"Where do you think you're going, Ms. Collins?" the officer asked.
"I have nothing to do with this!" Claire protested, her voice rising in pitch. "My mother is insane, and my brother is an idiot! I just came here to support them! I didn't touch any bottles!"
"We’ll need you to come down to the station for questioning anyway," the officer said, gesturing for her to move.
Within ten minutes, my husband, my mother-in-law, and my sister-in-law were all in police custody. The hospital room was suddenly empty, save for me, Noah, and Dr. Aris.
I collapsed back into the pillows, holding Noah so tight I was afraid I’d hurt him. He was the only thing keeping me anchored to reality. My baby was gone, murdered by the people who were supposed to love and protect him.
But as Dr. Aris walked over to check my vitals, his expression wasn't just sad. It was deeply troubled. He looked at the empty bassinet, then at the monitor, and finally down at me.
"Evelyn," he said, his voice dropping to a low whisper. "There is something very wrong with this entire situation. And I'm not just talking about the poison."
"What do you mean?" I asked, wiping my tears.
Dr. Aris leaned in closer. "We ran a blood-type compatibility test on your newborn when he was admitted to the NICU. Your blood type is O-negative. Daniel's blood type is AB-positive."
I nodded, confused. "Yes. I know."
"Evelyn... two parents with O-negative and AB-positive blood cannot biologically produce an O-negative baby. But the baby we just pronounced dead... was O-negative."
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I stared at him, my brain struggling to process the words. "What? But... I gave birth to him. I felt him kick. I delivered him."
"Yes, you did," Dr. Aris said, his eyes darkening. "But the baby that was brought to the NICU—the baby that just passed away... Evelyn, that baby was not yours."
