CHAPTER 13 — THE TRUTH IN FRONT OF EVERYONE
CHAPTER 13 — THE TRUTH IN FRONT OF EVERYONE
For several seconds, nobody moved.
The screen had gone black.
But my mother's final words remained inside my head.
The embryo was never destroyed.
My child was alive.
Somewhere.
Someone had kept my baby for years.
I looked at Daniel.
Then Maya.
Then Amelia.
Three children I had fought to reclaim.
And somewhere beyond these walls was a fourth.
A child I had never held.
A child I hadn't even known existed.
My knees almost gave out.
Julian caught me.
"Clara."
I pushed his hands away.
"No."
"You're shaking."
"I'm fine."
"You aren't."
"I said I'm fine."
I looked around the room.
Audrey was being restrained by two federal agents.
Richard sat against the wall, his face buried in his hands.
Vivian was crying.
Sienna was staring at the black screen.
Maya and Amelia stood together.
Nobody knew what to say.
Then I saw the cameras.
Dozens of them.
The recordings Sienna had activated were still broadcasting.
The secret archive had been exposed.
But I realized something.
This wasn't enough.
The government could seal the evidence.
The lawyers could negotiate.
The powerful could disappear.
And the public could forget.
I had spent sixteen years being told what my story was.
I had been called infertile.
Unstable.
Unfaithful.
Emotionally disturbed.
A woman who couldn't keep her marriage.
A woman who couldn't have children.
A woman who had supposedly abandoned her family.
They had built a story about me.
And everyone believed it.
Not anymore.
I turned toward the cameras.
"Keep them on."
The lead investigator looked at me.
"What?"
"Every camera."
"Clara, this is an active investigation."
"I know."
"You shouldn't make statements."
"Why?"
He hesitated.
"Because your case is complicated."
I looked at the screens.
"That's exactly why."
I walked toward the nearest camera.
Julian grabbed my wrist.
"Clara."
I turned.
"What?"
"If you do this, there is no going back."
I looked at him.
"There was never a way back."
Then I faced the camera.
And began.
"My name is Clara Hart."
My voice trembled.
But I continued.
"For sixteen years, people have been telling my story for me."
"They told me I was infertile."
"They told me my marriage failed because I was unstable."
"They told me my children were not mine."
"They told me I had lost everything because I wasn't good enough."
I took a breath.
"Every word was a lie."
Behind me, the screens displayed the documents.
Medical records.
Forged signatures.
Financial transfers.
Photographs.
Names.
Faces.
I continued.
"My medical records were altered."
"My fertility diagnosis was falsified."
"My embryos were transferred without my knowledge."
"My children were separated from me."
"My identity was used to sign documents I never signed."
"And the people responsible weren't strangers."
"They were the people I trusted."
The camera moved closer.
I looked directly into it.
"My husband."
"My best friend."
"My parents."
"Doctors."
"Lawyers."
"Businessmen."
"People who stood beside me while they destroyed my life."
Sienna lowered her head.
Julian closed his eyes.
Richard didn't move.
I continued.
"But I'm not here to ask for pity."
"I'm here because the truth belongs to everyone."
The investigator stared at me.
He knew what I was doing.
I was turning evidence into testimony.
Not in a courtroom.
In front of the world.
The broadcast spread within minutes.
Phones began ringing.
News stations picked up the feed.
Social media exploded.
The name Clara Hart appeared everywhere.
Then the documents appeared.
The fake fertility report.
The forged divorce papers.
The embryo transfer records.
The financial accounts.
The photographs.
Everything.
People who had once called me unstable began deleting their posts.
People who had believed Julian began questioning him.
People who had defended Sienna began demanding answers.
And then something unexpected happened.
A woman called the federal hotline.
Then another.
Then another.
Former patients.
Former employees.
Families.
People who had been silent for years.
They had evidence too.
The Aster Foundation wasn't a secret anymore.
It was a scandal.
And I had opened the door.
Three hours later, the investigator returned.
He looked exhausted.
"We have a problem."
I stared at him.
"What?"
"Your broadcast reached millions."
"I know."
"We've received hundreds of calls."
"That's good."
"Not all of them are."
I frowned.
"Some people are threatening you."
"I expected that."
"Others are claiming they were part of the program."
My stomach tightened.
"How many?"
"Thirty-seven so far."
"Thirty-seven?"
"And counting."
I looked at Julian.
He said nothing.
The investigator placed a folder on the table.
"This is from one of them."
I opened it.
Inside was a photograph of a young boy.
About fifteen.
Dark hair.
Gray-green eyes.
A crescent-shaped mark above his eyebrow.
My heart stopped.
The same mark Amelia had.
I looked at the investigator.
"Who is he?"
"We don't know."
I looked at the photograph again.
"His name?"
"Samuel Cross."
I stared at the surname.
"Cross."
Julian's expression changed.
"Audrey."
The investigator nodded.
"We believe Samuel may be related to the research program."
I felt sick.
"Where is he?"
"Missing."
My fingers tightened around the photograph.
Another child.
Another life.
Another family destroyed.
I looked at Audrey.
She was sitting across the room in handcuffs.
"Did you know him?"
She stared at me.
Then smiled.
"Of course."
"Where is he?"
She said nothing.
I stepped closer.
"Where is Samuel?"
Audrey leaned back.
"You think exposing me makes you powerful?"
"No."
"I think telling the truth makes me dangerous."
She laughed.
"Truth doesn't save people."
"It destroys them."
I stared at her.
"Where is my child?"
Her smile faded.
"You still don't understand."
"Then explain it."
"The embryo was never the valuable part."
I froze.
"What?"
"The genetic material was."
She leaned forward.
"Your pregnancy produced something unique."
"Your body created cells with the ability to repair damaged tissue."
"And that was what they wanted."
I felt sick.
"Why keep the embryo?"
"Because the embryo was the cleanest source."
"Then why didn't you destroy it?"
Audrey's eyes darkened.
"Because someone stole it."
My heart stopped.
"Who?"
She smiled.
"Your best friend."
I looked at Sienna.
Sienna went pale.
"No."
Audrey laughed.
"She took the embryo before the transfer."
Sienna shook her head.
"That's not true."
"You know it's true."
"No."
"You hid it."
"I hid the records."
"You hid the child."
Sienna stood.
"You're lying."
Audrey smiled.
"Ask her where she took it."
I turned toward Sienna.
"Where?"
She looked at me.
Tears filled her eyes.
"I didn't take your embryo."
"Then what did you take?"
She whispered:
"The sample."
"What sample?"
"Your mother's."
I frowned.
"I don't understand."
Sienna looked at Richard.
"He knows."
Everyone turned.
Richard slowly raised his head.
"Yes."
I stared at him.
"Tell me."
He sighed.
"The embryo wasn't created from you alone."
"I know."
"You and I."
"No."
He shook his head.
"That's what Audrey wants you to believe."
I froze.
"Then who?"
Richard looked toward the screen.
"My father."
"Elias."
He nodded.
"The embryo was created from Clara's genetic material and Elias's."
My stomach turned.
"Why?"
"Because Elias wanted to create a child capable of inheriting the full mutation."
"But that's Amelia."
"No."
He looked at me.
"Amelia was an accident."
I stared at him.
"What?"
"She was created using your genetic material and mine."
"That's why they wanted her."
"But the original embryo..."
He paused.
"...was different."
"How?"
"It contained the complete genetic sequence."
"From whom?"
Richard whispered:
"Your mother."
I couldn't breathe.
"My mother?"
"Yes."
"The embryo contained her corrected sequence."
I stared at him.
"Then my child..."
"Was created to recreate your mother."
Silence.
I looked at the black screen.
The final subject.
The child they had spent years hiding.
It wasn't simply my child.
It was a genetic copy of the woman who started everything.
My mother.
The investigator interrupted.
"There's another problem."
I turned.
"What?"
"We found the facility."
My heart stopped.
"Where?"
He placed a map on the table.
A remote research center outside Chicago.
Abandoned on government records.
Still active underground.
"We're going there."
I stood.
"I'm coming."
"No."
"I have a right to be there."
"This isn't safe."
"My child is there."
He hesitated.
"Then you're coming with federal protection."
Julian stood.
"I'm coming too."
The investigator looked at him.
"You're under investigation."
"I know."
"You could be arrested."
"I know."
"You could be considered a material witness."
"I know."
"Then why come?"
Julian looked at me.
"Because I spent sixteen years protecting her from the wrong things."
He paused.
"This time, I'm protecting her from the people who hurt her."
I looked away.
I wasn't ready to forgive him.
But I wasn't ready to lose him either.
Before we left, I went to Sienna.
She was sitting alone.
Her hands were cuffed.
Her face was swollen from crying.
I stood outside the room.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
She looked at me.
"I was afraid."
"You always say that."
"I know."
"You could have told me years ago."
"Would you have believed me?"
I didn't answer.
She smiled sadly.
"Probably not."
I sat across from her.
"Did you love me?"
"Yes."
"Then why did you betray me?"
"Because I was weak."
She looked down.
"I thought if I helped them, they'd leave my brother alone."
"But they killed him anyway."
"Yes."
"And you raised Amelia."
"Yes."
"Do you regret it?"
She looked toward the window.
"Every day."
I swallowed.
"Did Amelia love you?"
Sienna began crying.
"Yes."
"Does she still?"
"I don't know."
I stood.
"She does."
Sienna looked at me.
"How do you know?"
"Because love doesn't disappear just because someone hurt you."
I turned toward the door.
Then stopped.
"You saved her."
Sienna's eyes filled with tears.
"That's all I wanted to do."
I looked back.
"You still have to answer for what you did."
"I know."
"But I won't lie about what you did right."
Sienna nodded.
"Thank you."
I left.
The convoy departed before midnight.
Three federal vehicles.
Two armored cars.
One helicopter.
The research center was nearly two hours away.
The closer we got, the quieter everyone became.
Maya and Amelia were in the second vehicle.
Daniel was with me.
Julian sat beside me.
The investigator was across from us.
Then my phone rang.
Unknown number.
I answered.
Nobody spoke.
"Hello?"
Static.
Then a child's voice.
Soft.
Frightened.
"Mom?"
My entire body froze.
Julian looked at me.
"What?"
The voice came again.
"Mom..."
I couldn't breathe.
"Who is this?"
A pause.
Then:
"They told me you wouldn't come."
My hands shook.
"Where are you?"
"I'm scared."
"What's your name?"
Silence.
Then the child whispered:
"Emma."
My heart stopped.
"Emma."
The investigator immediately signaled for the call to be traced.
I pressed the phone closer.
"Emma, listen to me."
"I'm listening."
"I'm coming."
"Really?"
"Yes."
"Don't let them take me again."
"I won't."
"Mom?"
"Yes?"
"I've been waiting for you."
My eyes filled with tears.
"I've been waiting for you too."
The line went dead.
The investigator looked up.
"We have the location."
The helicopter pilot received the coordinates.
Julian grabbed my hand.
"Clara."
I looked at him.
"This ends tonight."
I nodded.
"Yes."
The facility appeared on the horizon.
A massive concrete structure hidden beneath an abandoned pharmaceutical plant.
Lights burned underground.
Vehicles surrounded the perimeter.
Armed guards.
The investigator spoke into the radio.
"Federal agents. Move."
The gates exploded inward.
Everything happened at once.
Gunfire.
Sirens.
Shouting.
The convoy surged forward.
I stayed inside the vehicle until the doors opened.
Then I ran.
Julian followed.
We entered the underground facility.
Hallways.
Laboratories.
Glass walls.
Medical equipment.
Rows of incubators.
And then I saw them.
Children.
Dozens of them.
Some asleep.
Some awake.
Some staring through glass.
My heart broke.
"How many?"
The investigator whispered:
"Thirty-two."
Thirty-two children.
Thirty-two lives.
Thirty-two secrets.
I walked through the corridor.
One little girl reached toward me.
I stopped.
She looked about eight.
"Are you Clara?"
I knelt.
"Yes."
She smiled.
"They told us you would come."
I swallowed.
"Who?"
"The woman."
"What woman?"
She pointed down the corridor.
"Your mother."
My blood ran cold.
"She's here?"
The girl nodded.
I stood.
"Where?"
She pointed toward a locked door.
"Behind there."
I ran.
Julian followed.
We reached the door.
A keypad.
The investigator forced it open.
The door swung wide.
Inside was a small room.
A chair.
A table.
And a woman sitting beside the window.
Older.
Pale.
Gray hair.
She slowly turned.
My breath stopped.
It wasn't my mother.
It was a woman who looked almost exactly like her.
My mother had been dead.
But someone had recreated her.
Or tried to.
The woman smiled.
"Clara."
I stepped backward.
"Who are you?"
She stood.
"My name is Elise."
"Elise what?"
She smiled.
"Elise Hart."
I couldn't breathe.
"That's my mother's name."
She nodded.
"I know."
"You're lying."
"No."
She touched her face.
"Your mother gave me this life."
I stared at her.
"You're Subject Zero."
She smiled.
"Yes."
Julian whispered:
"Impossible."
Elise looked at him.
"Nothing is impossible when people are willing to sacrifice enough lives."
I stepped closer.
"Where is my child?"
Her smile disappeared.
"Safe."
"Where?"
She pointed toward the next room.
I opened the door.
A baby lay inside an incubator.
Tiny.
Perfect.
Alive.
My knees collapsed.
I covered my mouth.
A nurse stood beside the incubator.
The baby opened her eyes.
Green.
My eyes.
She looked directly at me.
The nurse whispered:
"Her name is Emma."
I began crying.
My child.
My lost child.
Alive.
After all these years.
I pressed my hand against the glass.
Emma moved her tiny fingers.
I whispered:
"Mommy's here."
Then the alarm began screaming.
The entire facility shook.
The investigator shouted:
"Everyone out!"
Elise smiled.
"Too late."
I looked at her.
"What did you do?"
She looked toward the ceiling.
"The facility has been compromised."
"By whom?"
She smiled.
"By the person who wanted you to find this place."
I froze.
"Who?"
The lights went out.
A familiar voice echoed through the darkness.
"You."
I turned.
Richard stood at the doorway.
He was holding a gun.
His eyes were filled with tears.
"I'm sorry, Clara."
My heart stopped.
He raised the weapon.
"But I need Emma."
I stepped in front of the incubator.
"No."
Richard's hand trembled.
"I never wanted this."
"Then put the gun down."
"I can't."
"Why?"
"Because if Emma survives..."
He closed his eyes.
"...everyone dies."
The alarm continued screaming.
And behind Richard—
the laboratory doors began locking one by one.
The truth was finally in front of everyone.
But the truth had brought us to the most dangerous place yet.
Because the man holding the gun wasn't Elias.
Wasn't Audrey.
Wasn't Sienna.
Wasn't Julian.
May you like
It was my father.
And he was pointing it at the child I had spent sixteen years searching for.
