Chapter 3 — The Doctor Who Lied
Chapter 3 — The Doctor Who Lied
Dr. Marcus Reed knew he was in trouble before the elevator doors opened.
He could feel it in the silence.
Normally, the executive floor was never quiet.
Phones rang.
Assistants hurried through the corridors.
Administrators argued over schedules.
Doctors stopped by to complain about staffing or budgets.
But that morning, every sound seemed to have disappeared.
Marcus stepped out of the elevator.
Two security officers were waiting.
“Dr. Reed.”
He stopped.
“Yes?”
“Mr. Raymond wants to see you.”
Marcus swallowed.
“I was already scheduled to meet him.”
“No.”
The taller officer looked directly at him.
“You were ordered to meet him.”
Marcus nodded.
“Of course.”
The officer pointed toward the conference room.
Marcus walked.
Every step felt heavier than the last.
He knew what Raymond had found.
He just didn't know how much.
Inside the conference room, Raymond sat alone.
The curtains were closed.
A folder rested on the table.
Beside it was a tablet.
Marcus entered.
The door closed behind him.
“Sit.”
Marcus sat.
Raymond didn't speak.
He pressed a button.
A recording began playing.
Marcus heard his own voice.
“She appears emotionally unstable.”
Then Victoria's voice.
“She becomes aggressive when confronted.”
Then Marcus again.
“I think the child should be monitored closely.”
The recording stopped.
Marcus stared at the table.
Raymond leaned back.
“You said those things.”
“Yes.”
“Were they true?”
Marcus hesitated.
“No.”
“Then why did you say them?”
Marcus's mouth went dry.
“I was wrong.”
Raymond's eyes hardened.
“That answer might work in a medical review.”
Marcus looked up.
“It won't work with me.”
Silence.
Raymond opened the folder.
Inside were bank records.
“You received twenty thousand dollars.”
Marcus closed his eyes.
“Yes.”
“From whom?”
“An intermediary.”
“Name.”
“I don't know.”
“You expect me to believe that?”
“Yes.”
Raymond smiled without humor.
“You're a doctor.”
“Yes.”
“You know how evidence works.”
Marcus said nothing.
“You also know how convenient ignorance becomes when money is involved.”
Marcus lowered his head.
“I was desperate.”
“Twenty thousand dollars made you desperate enough to risk a pregnant woman's life?”
“I needed the money.”
“For what?”
Marcus looked away.
“Debt.”
“What kind?”
“Gambling.”
Raymond stared at him.
Marcus whispered:
“I had a problem.”
“You still do.”
“I know.”
Raymond closed the folder.
“You're going to tell me everything.”
Marcus looked up.
“Or?”
“Or the police will.”
Marcus breathed slowly.
Then he began.
“Victoria contacted me six weeks ago.”
“Where?”
“My private clinic.”
“What did she want?”
“She asked about Emily.”
“What did she know?”
“Everything.”
Raymond's expression didn't change.
“Everything?”
“Her pregnancy. Her medical history. Her relationship with Daniel.”
“How?”
“I don't know.”
“You never asked?”
“I didn't want to.”
“Because you were being paid.”
Marcus nodded.
“Yes.”
Raymond looked at him for several seconds.
“Continue.”
“She showed me the psychological reports.”
“The forged ones.”
“Yes.”
“And?”
“She told me Emily was unstable.”
“What did she want you to do?”
“Document anything that could make her look dangerous.”
Marcus swallowed.
“She said there would be a custody case.”
Raymond's jaw tightened.
“When?”
“After the baby was born.”
“So yesterday's incident was preparation.”
“Yes.”
“Who planned it?”
Marcus hesitated.
“I don't know.”
Raymond leaned forward.
“You do.”
Marcus looked terrified.
“She never said his name.”
“Whose?”
“Daniel's father.”
Raymond became completely still.
“Edward Blackwell.”
Marcus nodded.
“He arranged the money.”
“Through whom?”
“Nathan.”
Raymond remembered the photograph.
Nathan Blackwell.
Daniel's cousin.
The man who had been watching Emily outside her clinic.
“So Nathan recruited you.”
“Yes.”
“Victoria?”
“Yes.”
“Evelyn?”
Marcus looked up sharply.
“I don't know about Evelyn.”
Raymond studied him.
“Think carefully.”
“I swear.”
Marcus's voice shook.
“I never spoke to her.”
Raymond pressed the recording again.
A second recording played.
It was a conversation between Marcus and Evelyn.
“Is the file ready?”
Marcus's own voice answered:
“Not yet.”
“You were told to finish it.”
“I'm doing what I can.”
The recording ended.
Marcus stared at the tablet.
“I…”
Raymond said nothing.
Marcus's face collapsed.
“I forgot.”
“You forgot a conversation that happened yesterday?”
“I was scared.”
“You should be.”
The door opened.
The hospital attorney entered.
“Mr. Raymond.”
“What?”
“We have a problem.”
Raymond looked at him.
“Which one?”
“The court petition has already been filed.”
“I know.”
“No.”
The attorney placed a document on the table.
“They filed a second petition.”
Raymond read it.
His expression darkened.
“This is impossible.”
Marcus looked confused.
“What?”
Raymond handed him the document.
Marcus read.
His face went white.
The Blackwell family wasn't merely asking for custody after birth.
They were requesting that Emily be placed under temporary medical guardianship immediately.
Their claim was simple:
Emily was emotionally unstable.
She had become physically aggressive.
She was a danger to herself.
And her unborn child.
Marcus stared at the document.
“They used my report.”
Raymond nodded.
“Your lie.”
Marcus lowered his head.
“My God.”
Raymond's voice was cold.
“You helped build the case.”
Meanwhile, Emily sat in her hospital room.
A nurse brought her breakfast.
Emily looked at the tray.
“I'm not hungry.”
“You should eat.”
Emily looked up.
“Are you my nurse?”
“Yes.”
“What is your name?”
“Laura.”
“Laura, has anyone asked you questions about me?”
The nurse hesitated.
Emily noticed.
“It's okay.”
Laura looked toward the door.
“Two people.”
“Who?”
“An administrator.”
“Evelyn?”
“Yes.”
“And someone else.”
“Who?”
“I don't know.”
Emily frowned.
“What did they ask?”
Laura hesitated.
“Whether you cry often.”
Emily stared.
“What?”
“They asked if you seemed anxious.”
“And?”
“I told them you were frightened.”
Emily sighed.
“Because I am.”
Laura looked uncomfortable.
“I'm sorry.”
Emily smiled.
“It's not your fault.”
The nurse lowered her voice.
“Ms. Hale?”
“Yes?”
“Mr. Raymond told us not to discuss this.”
“What?”
“There are people asking questions about you.”
Emily's smile disappeared.
“Who?”
“I don't know.”
Laura walked toward the door.
“But please be careful.”
After Laura left, Emily picked up her phone.
She called Raymond.
He answered.
“Emily?”
“Why is everyone asking about my mental health?”
Silence.
Emily's heart sank.
“You knew.”
“I suspected.”
“You should have told me.”
“I didn't want to frighten you.”
“I'm already frightened.”
Raymond exhaled.
“You're right.”
“What's happening?”
“They're trying to build a case that you're unstable.”
Emily closed her eyes.
“Who?”
“The Blackwell family.”
“Daniel?”
“His family.”
She stared at the ceiling.
“Is Daniel involved?”
“I don't know.”
“You do know something.”
Raymond remained silent.
Emily whispered:
“Please don't protect me by lying to me.”
That sentence hit him.
“I'll tell you everything.”
Raymond explained the custody petition.
Emily listened.
When he finished, she said nothing.
Then:
“That's why Victoria wanted me angry.”
“Yes.”
“She wanted witnesses.”
“Yes.”
“And the doctor helped.”
“Yes.”
Emily laughed softly.
“They really planned everything.”
Raymond didn't answer.
“I almost gave them exactly what they wanted.”
“No.”
Emily looked at him.
“I screamed.”
“You were attacked.”
“I pushed her.”
“After she grabbed you.”
Emily looked down.
“But they will use it.”
“Yes.”
“Then I need evidence.”
Raymond smiled faintly.
“You sound like your grandmother.”
Emily looked at him.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
That afternoon, Raymond returned to Marcus.
This time, he brought a detective.
Marcus looked frightened.
The detective placed a recorder on the table.
“We're going to ask you some questions.”
Marcus nodded.
“Okay.”
“Who paid you?”
“I told Mr. Raymond.”
“We need names.”
Marcus hesitated.
“Nathan Blackwell.”
“Who authorized the payment?”
“I don't know.”
“Who gave you the forged reports?”
“Victoria.”
“Who instructed you to use them?”
Marcus swallowed.
“Evelyn.”
The detective looked at Raymond.
Raymond didn't react.
“Anyone else?”
Marcus closed his eyes.
“Yes.”
“Who?”
“Daniel.”
Silence.
Raymond's face hardened.
“What did Daniel say?”
Marcus looked directly at him.
“He told me Emily couldn't be allowed to leave this hospital.”
Raymond stood.
“What?”
“He said if she left, everything would be lost.”
“What everything?”
Marcus shook his head.
“I don't know.”
“You spoke to him.”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“Three nights ago.”
“Where?”
“In the parking garage.”
Raymond stared.
“Why didn't you tell me?”
“Because I was afraid.”
“You should have been afraid.”
Marcus looked down.
“I'm sorry.”
Raymond's voice became cold.
“You don't get to apologize yet.”
Marcus looked up.
“You tell the truth first.”
That evening, police arrested Marcus.
As they escorted him away, he stopped.
“Mr. Raymond.”
Raymond turned.
Marcus whispered:
“There is something else.”
“What?”
“Daniel wasn't the one who gave the final order.”
Raymond frowned.
“Then who?”
Marcus looked toward the elevator.
“His mother.”
Raymond froze.
“Catherine Blackwell.”
Marcus nodded.
“She told me Emily could never leave this hospital.”
Then the elevator doors closed.
Raymond stood alone.
Catherine Blackwell.
Daniel's mother.
The woman who had never appeared in any of the surveillance reports.
The woman who had remained completely invisible.
The woman who had everything to lose if Emily gave birth to the Blackwell heir.
His phone rang.
It was Emily.
He answered.
“Emily?”
Her voice was shaking.
“Uncle.”
“What happened?”
“Someone was in my room.”
Raymond's entire body went rigid.
“Where are you?”
“I'm still here.”
“Did you see them?”
“No.”
“Did they touch you?”
“No.”
“Then what happened?”
“I woke up.”
Emily's breathing trembled.
“There was a note on my pillow.”
Raymond's heart sank.
“What did it say?”
Emily was silent.
“Emily.”
“It said…”
Her voice broke.
“You should have signed the contract.”
Raymond looked toward the security officer.
“Lock down the entire floor.”
The officer immediately moved.
Emily continued.
“Uncle?”
“Yes?”
“There was something else.”
“What?”
“A photograph.”
“Of what?”
“My mother.”
Raymond stopped.
Emily's mother had died eleven years earlier.
“Where did they get it?”
“I don't know.”
“What was written on the back?”
Emily whispered:
“She knew what would happen to you.”
Raymond closed his eyes.
The conspiracy had just become something much older.
This wasn't only about Daniel.
It wasn't only about the baby.
And it wasn't only about the Blackwell inheritance.
Someone had known Emily's mother.
Someone had been planning this long before Emily ever met Daniel.
Raymond looked at the hospital hallway.
Security officers were sealing doors.
Nurses were being questioned.
Cameras were being reviewed.
The hospital had become a battlefield.
But somewhere inside it, someone still had access.
Someone who knew Emily's history.
Someone who knew her mother's secrets.
Someone who knew exactly where to strike.
Raymond turned toward the security director.
“Find Evelyn.”
“We already searched her office.”
“Then search her home.”
The director hesitated.
“Without a warrant?”
Raymond looked at him.
“Get one.”
“And if she's gone?”
Raymond's expression became grim.
“Then find out where she went.”
Three floors below, an elevator opened.
A woman stepped into the parking garage.
She wore a gray coat.
Dark sunglasses.
Her face was partially hidden.
She walked toward a black SUV.
Before getting inside, she removed her phone.
“It's done.”
A man's voice answered.
“Is Emily still there?”
“Yes.”
“Good.”
“And Raymond?”
“He won't matter once he learns the truth.”
The woman hesitated.
“What truth?”
The voice on the phone laughed.
“The truth about who Emily's father really was.”
The woman froze.
“You never told me that.”
“You didn't need to know.”
The call ended.
She stared at the hospital tower.
Then whispered:
“Who are you, Emily?”
Upstairs, Emily placed one hand over her stomach.
The baby moved beneath her palm.
She looked toward the locked door.
She was afraid.
But she was no longer confused.
Someone had been building a case against her.
Someone had entered her room.
Someone knew her mother.
And someone was hiding the truth about her father.
The doctor had lied.
But he had not been the mastermind.
He had only been one piece.
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And Emily was beginning to understand the terrifying truth:
The people trying to take her baby had been preparing for this long before she ever walked into the hospital.
