Chapter 11 — The Night They Took My Son
Chapter 11 — The Night They Took My Son
By the time Leah reached the end of the street, she knew she was being followed.
The black sedan remained behind her.
Three car lengths.
Then four.
Then five.
It never came closer.
It didn't need to.
Whoever was inside wanted her to know they were there.
Leah held Noah against her chest.
His tiny face was pressed beneath her chin.
For the first time since giving birth, she understood what true fear felt like.
Not fear of dying.
Fear of surviving without him.
She stopped beneath a streetlamp.
The black sedan stopped too.
Nathan stepped out of the Bell house behind her.
“Leah!”
She turned.
“Stay back.”
He stopped.
“There's a car following you.”
“I know.”
“Then don't go anywhere.”
Leah looked at him.
“That's exactly what they want.”
“What?”
“They want me afraid.”
She glanced at the sedan.
“They want me to run.”
Nathan approached carefully.
“What did the message say?”
Leah showed him.
His face changed.
“You can't go to the trust building.”
“Why?”
“Because it's owned by your father.”
Leah stared.
“My father doesn't exist.”
Nathan shook his head.
“That was the point.”
The black sedan suddenly accelerated.
Nathan grabbed Leah.
“Down!”
The car screamed past them.
A window lowered.
Something flashed.
A gunshot cracked through the night.
The streetlamp exploded.
Leah screamed.
Nathan pulled her behind a parked vehicle.
Another shot.
Glass shattered.
Noah began crying.
Leah covered his head.
“It's okay.”
Her voice shook.
“Mommy's here.”
Nathan drew the weapon he had taken from Gabriel.
“Stay here.”
“No.”
“Leah.”
“I'm not letting you disappear again.”
He looked at her.
“I won't.”
The sedan turned at the intersection.
Nathan fired once.
The bullet struck the rear window.
The car swerved.
Then vanished.
Leah slowly stood.
Her hands were trembling.
Nathan lowered the gun.
“They weren't trying to kill you.”
“How do you know?”
“If they were, they'd have stayed.”
Leah looked down at Noah.
“Then what were they trying to do?”
Nathan's face hardened.
“Scare you.”
Leah stared toward the empty road.
“They're going to come for him.”
Nathan nodded.
“Yes.”
They returned to the house.
Rachel had already locked every door.
Eleanor stood in the hallway.
Gabriel was gone.
Leah placed Noah in the nursery.
For the first time, she noticed something strange.
The room had been prepared before she arrived.
A crib.
Blankets.
A monitor.
Even a mobile.
Clouds and stars.
Leah stared at it.
“My mother made this?”
Eleanor shook her head.
“No.”
“Then who?”
Eleanor looked toward Nathan.
“He did.”
Leah turned.
Nathan stood in the doorway.
“I bought it before you gave birth.”
“When?”
“Three months ago.”
“You never told me.”
“I wanted to surprise you.”
Leah looked at the mobile.
She remembered the nursery in their apartment.
The same clouds.
The same stars.
She suddenly felt sick.
“Was that part of the plan too?”
Nathan shook his head.
“No.”
“Then why did you buy it?”
“Because I thought I was going to be a father.”
Leah looked away.
Nathan's voice became quiet.
“I didn't know the truth.”
She wanted to believe him.
She hated herself for wanting that.
At 2:13 a.m., the power went out.
The house fell completely dark.
Leah immediately woke.
Noah was crying.
She ran to the nursery.
The crib was empty.
Her scream shook the entire house.
“NO!”
Nathan came running.
“What's wrong?”
“He's gone.”
Nathan looked into the crib.
The blanket was still warm.
Leah's knees nearly collapsed.
“He was here.”
Rachel appeared behind them.
“What happened?”
“He's gone.”
Eleanor rushed in.
“Lock the house.”
Rachel was already moving.
“Everyone stay inside.”
Leah searched the room.
Window.
Door.
Closet.
Nothing.
Then she saw it.
A tiny white envelope on the crib.
Her name.
LEAH.
She opened it.
One sentence.
You were warned.
Her blood ran cold.
Nathan took the paper.
“This is Doreen.”
“No.”
Leah shook her head.
“She doesn't write like this.”
Rachel looked at the note.
“She's right.”
Eleanor's face had gone pale.
“I know that handwriting.”
Leah looked at her.
“Whose?”
Eleanor whispered:
“Your father's.”
Leah stopped breathing.
“My father?”
Eleanor nodded.
“The same handwriting appears in the trust documents.”
“He's alive.”
“No.”
“You said he was dead.”
“He is.”
“Then how did he leave this?”
Eleanor looked toward the window.
“I don't know.”
A sound came from downstairs.
A door closing.
Nathan immediately reached for his gun.
“Someone's inside.”
They moved downstairs.
Slowly.
Rachel led.
Nathan followed.
Leah stayed behind them.
Every room was dark.
Then the kitchen light turned on.
A man sat at the table.
He was older.
Gray-haired.
Calm.
Wearing a dark coat.
Leah stopped.
The man's eyes lifted.
“Hello, Leah.”
She knew him.
Not from life.
From photographs.
Her father's face.
Her mother's husband.
The man who had supposedly died before Leah turned eighteen.
Her father.
Daniel Bell.
Leah couldn't speak.
Nathan raised his weapon.
“Put your hands where I can see them.”
Daniel smiled.
“You still carry the Carver weapon.”
Nathan froze.
Daniel looked at Leah.
“You chose him.”
Leah shook her head.
“No.”
“You did.”
“I didn't know what I was choosing.”
Daniel's smile disappeared.
“Neither did I.”
Leah stepped forward.
“Where is my son?”
Daniel looked at her.
“Safe.”
“Where?”
“With someone who understands what he is.”
“What is he?”
Daniel's expression softened.
“My grandson.”
Leah's voice broke.
“You took him.”
“I protected him.”
“You stole him.”
“I saved him from Doreen.”
“You used me.”
Daniel didn't deny it.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because the trust needed an heir.”
Leah stared.
“And I needed a mother.”
Daniel's eyes filled with tears.
“You were always supposed to inherit.”
“Then why did you disappear?”
“Because if I stayed alive, Doreen would have killed you.”
“She tried anyway.”
“I know.”
Leah stepped closer.
“Where is Noah?”
Daniel looked at her.
“Not with me.”
“Then who has him?”
He hesitated.
Leah's blood froze.
“Who?”
Daniel whispered:
“Your husband.”
Leah turned.
Nathan was gone.
The house exploded into chaos.
“Where is Nathan?”
Rachel ran upstairs.
Eleanor searched the bedrooms.
Leah stood in the center of the hallway, frozen.
“No.”
She shook her head.
“He wouldn't.”
Daniel said nothing.
Leah looked at him.
“What did you do?”
“Nothing.”
“You know where he is.”
Daniel nodded.
“He left with the child.”
“When?”
“Ten minutes ago.”
Leah grabbed his coat.
“Why didn't you stop him?”
“Because he wasn't taking the child to Doreen.”
“Then where?”
Daniel looked toward the front door.
“To the place where this began.”
Leah stared.
“Where?”
“The hospital.”
They drove through the city at terrifying speed.
Rachel drove.
Leah sat beside her.
Daniel sat in the back.
Eleanor remained at the house.
Nobody spoke.
Finally, Leah asked:
“Why would Nathan take Noah?”
Daniel answered.
“Because he knows the truth.”
“What truth?”
“That Noah isn't merely the Bell heir.”
Leah looked at him.
“What else is he?”
Daniel stared out the window.
“He is evidence.”
“Evidence of what?”
“Of what our families did twenty years ago.”
Leah's stomach tightened.
“What did you do?”
Daniel closed his eyes.
“We created the trust.”
“That isn't a crime.”
“No.”
He opened his eyes.
“We created the trust using stolen money.”
Leah went silent.
“From whom?”
“From the government.”
Rachel nearly missed a turn.
“What?”
Daniel continued.
“Your grandfather operated an illegal medical research program.”
Leah stared.
“What kind of research?”
“Genetic inheritance.”
She felt sick.
“They created embryos.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“To preserve bloodlines.”
Leah looked down at her hands.
“Noah.”
Daniel nodded.
“Your son is the final surviving embryo from that program.”
Rachel whispered:
“That can't be true.”
Daniel looked at her.
“You know it is.”
Rachel's face went pale.
“Then the other children…”
“Dead.”
Leah's breath caught.
“How many?”
“Seventeen.”
Silence.
“My son was number eighteen.”
The hospital appeared ahead.
Briar Glen.
Dark.
Silent.
Waiting.
Nathan's car was parked outside.
Leah jumped out.
The doors opened automatically.
Inside, the corridors were empty.
She called his name.
“Nathan!”
No answer.
They reached the maternity floor.
The lights flickered.
Then a voice came through the speakers.
“Leah.”
She froze.
Nathan.
“I'm sorry.”
Leah looked at the ceiling.
“Where are you?”
“Room 314.”
She ran.
Rachel followed.
Daniel stayed behind.
Leah reached the door.
It was locked.
“Nathan!”
“Don't open it.”
“Where is Noah?”
“Inside.”
“Open the door.”
“I can't.”
“Why?”
A long silence.
Then:
“Because Doreen is here.”
Leah's blood ran cold.
The lights went out.
A scream came from inside the room.
“LEAH!”
She slammed against the door.
“NATHAN!”
The lock clicked.
The door opened.
Leah rushed inside.
Nathan stood near the window.
His hands were covered in blood.
The crib was overturned.
And Noah was gone.
Leah screamed.
“What did you do?”
Nathan looked at her.
“I tried to stop her.”
“Who?”
He pointed toward the bathroom.
“Doreen.”
Leah ran inside.
The window was open.
Rain poured through.
No Doreen.
No baby.
Only a small blue blanket.
Leah collapsed.
“No.”
Nathan knelt beside her.
“She took him.”
Leah shoved him away.
“You were supposed to protect him.”
“I tried.”
“You knew!”
“I knew she'd come.”
“And you brought him here anyway!”
“I had no choice.”
“You always have a choice!”
Nathan's face crumpled.
“I thought I could trade myself.”
“For Noah?”
“Yes.”
“What did she want?”
Nathan looked at Leah.
“You.”
Leah froze.
“What?”
“She offered Noah back if you signed the trust.”
Leah stared.
“Then why isn't he here?”
Nathan looked toward the empty window.
“Because she changed the deal.”
A phone rang.
Nathan's.
He answered.
Doreen's voice came through.
“You have thirty minutes.”
Nathan closed his eyes.
“For what?”
“To bring Leah.”
“Where?”
“The old Bell estate.”
“What happens if we don't?”
Doreen laughed.
“You'll hear your son cry.”
The call ended.
Leah stared at Nathan.
“Give me the phone.”
He did.
She called back.
Doreen answered immediately.
“Hello, Leah.”
“Give me my son.”
“You know what I want.”
“The trust.”
“Yes.”
“You get the trust when I see him.”
“No.”
Leah's voice became cold.
“You're afraid.”
Silence.
“You're afraid I won't sign.”
Doreen laughed softly.
“You're not in a position to negotiate.”
“I am.”
“Why?”
“Because you need me alive.”
Doreen stopped laughing.
Leah continued.
“You can't transfer the trust without me.”
Another silence.
Then Doreen whispered:
“You've been talking to your father.”
Leah's eyes narrowed.
“How do you know?”
“Because he made the same mistake.”
“What mistake?”
“Believing he could control the Bell bloodline.”
Leah stared at the phone.
“Where is my son?”
Doreen answered:
“Come alone.”
“I'm not coming alone.”
“You will.”
“No.”
Leah looked at Nathan.
Then Rachel.
Then Daniel.
“I've spent my whole life letting powerful people decide what happens to me.”
Her voice hardened.
“Tonight, they don't.”
Doreen laughed.
“You think you're powerful now?”
Leah looked toward the dark hospital window.
“No.”
She smiled.
“I think you're scared.”
Doreen's voice became quiet.
“You should be.”
The call ended.
Daniel stepped into the room.
Leah turned.
“Tell me everything.”
He looked at her.
“I will.”
“No more lies.”
“No more.”
“Why did you leave?”
“Because I discovered the research program.”
“Who ran it?”
“Doreen.”
Leah stared.
“My mother?”
“No.”
“Doreen?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“She wanted a child who could inherit the trust without being challenged.”
Leah felt sick.
“And Noah?”
“He wasn't supposed to exist.”
“Then why does he?”
Daniel looked at her.
“Because your mother stole the embryo.”
Leah froze.
“What?”
“She saved it.”
“From Doreen?”
“Yes.”
“And implanted it in me?”
“No.”
Leah frowned.
“Then how did I become pregnant?”
Daniel's expression changed.
“Your mother didn't.”
Leah's blood ran cold.
“Then who?”
Daniel whispered:
“Nathan's first wife.”
Silence.
Leah stared.
“What?”
“Nathan was married before you.”
Rachel looked at him.
“That isn't true.”
“It is.”
Leah's heart pounded.
“Who was she?”
Daniel answered:
“Simone.”
Leah couldn't breathe.
The woman she had met in the hospital.
The woman who had warned her.
The woman who had helped her escape.
Simone.
Nathan's first wife.
Daniel continued.
“Simone carried the embryo.”
Leah's face went white.
“Then how is Noah my son?”
“She gave birth to him.”
Leah shook her head.
“No.”
Daniel looked at her.
“Your mother transferred the embryo into your body after Simone delivered.”
The room went silent.
Leah couldn't process it.
“You're saying…”
Daniel nodded.
“You carried a child who was genetically created from your family.”
Leah looked down.
Noah.
Her son.
Her blood.
Her father's genetic material.
But born through another woman.
The entire pregnancy had been engineered.
Her marriage had been engineered.
Her life had been engineered.
She felt something inside her break.
“Why would they do this?”
Daniel answered:
“Because the trust required a living Bell heir.”
“And I wasn't enough?”
“You were the heir.”
“Then why Noah?”
“Because the trust required a male successor.”
Leah closed her eyes.
“And Nathan?”
Daniel looked away.
“He was only the guardian.”
Leah opened her eyes.
“Only?”
“Yes.”
“Then why did he love me?”
Daniel's voice softened.
“Because that was the one thing none of us planned.”
The hospital alarm suddenly sounded.
Every light turned red.
Rachel looked toward the corridor.
“Security.”
Daniel shook his head.
“No.”
“What?”
He listened.
“Those aren't security.”
Footsteps approached.
Many of them.
Nathan raised his weapon.
Leah held Noah's blanket against her chest.
The door burst open.
Men in black entered.
Doreen stood behind them.
She smiled.
“Enough.”
Leah stared at her.
“Where is my son?”
Doreen held up her phone.
A live video appeared.
Noah was sleeping in a white crib.
Leah's breath caught.
“Where is he?”
Doreen smiled.
“The old Bell estate.”
Leah's eyes hardened.
“You wanted me there.”
“Yes.”
“Then let's go.”
Nathan stepped beside her.
Doreen looked at him.
“You too.”
Nathan's expression changed.
“Why?”
“Because your second life is over.”
Doreen looked at Leah.
“Tonight, you will sign the trust.”
She looked at Nathan.
“And then he will tell you who your son's real father is.”
Nathan went pale.
Leah turned toward him.
“You know.”
Nathan said nothing.
Doreen smiled.
“Oh, he knows.”
Leah's heart sank.
“What does he know?”
Doreen stepped closer.
“That Noah isn't the only child you gave birth to.”
Leah froze.
“What?”
Doreen smiled.
“There were twins.”
The room disappeared.
Leah couldn't breathe.
“Where is the other child?”
Doreen's smile widened.
“That's the child we've been protecting.”
She leaned closer.
“Your daughter.”
May you like
Then the lights went out.
And somewhere in the darkness, a newborn began to cry.
