CHAPTER 4 — THE INVESTIGATION THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
CHAPTER 4 — THE INVESTIGATION THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
The next morning, Alexander canceled every meeting.
He drove alone to the fertility clinic he and Isabella had visited for nearly three years.
The building had been renovated.
Most of the staff had changed.
Only one familiar face remained.
Dr. Rachel Morgan.
She recognized him immediately.
"Mr. Whitmore."
"I need to ask you something."
Her expression turned cautious.
"I'm afraid I can't discuss former patients."
"This isn't about treatment."
His voice trembled.
"It's about timing."
She invited him into her office.
Alexander placed Isabella's journal on her desk.
He opened it to the final page.
"The last entry..."
"...could she have been pregnant?"
Dr. Morgan remained silent.
Medical confidentiality bound her tightly.
Then she looked at the date.
Her eyes widened almost imperceptibly.
"You should ask your former wife."
"I don't know where she is."
The doctor's face softened.
"I can't answer your question."
She paused.
"But I can tell you one thing."
Alexander leaned forward.
"The final blood test we performed before your divorce..."
"...was never discussed with either of you."
His pulse exploded.
"What do you mean?"
"The results came back after the appointment had already been canceled."
He felt the room spin.
"Canceled?"
"Yes."
"Your mother personally called our office."
"My mother?"
"She said the marriage was ending and requested all future communication stop immediately."
Alexander stared in disbelief.
"No..."
Dr. Morgan continued carefully.
"We attempted several phone calls."
"No one answered."
"We mailed a certified letter."
"It was returned unopened."
Alexander could barely hear.
"What were the results?"
She slowly pushed the file back toward herself.
"I'm legally unable to disclose that."
"But if I were you..."
She met his eyes.
"...I would find Isabella."
Alexander left the clinic in a daze.
He drove directly to the Whitmore mansion.
Grace was hosting one of her charity luncheons.
Elegant guests laughed beneath crystal chandeliers.
Alexander walked straight through the dining room without acknowledging anyone.
"Mother."
Grace smiled brightly.
"Alexander, you're home early."
He placed Isabella's journal on the table.
"Did you cancel our appointment at the fertility clinic six years ago?"
Her smile vanished.
"I don't remember."
"Did you intercept their phone calls?"
Silence.
"Did you return their letter?"
Several guests looked over nervously.
Grace lowered her voice.
"This isn't the place."
He slammed both hands onto the table.
"It is exactly the place."
Crystal glasses rattled.
"I asked you a question."
For one brief second...
Grace's composure cracked.
"I did what any mother would do."
Alexander felt sick.
"What does that mean?"
"I protected this family."
"From what?"
"From wasting more years on a woman who couldn't produce an heir."
His breathing became uneven.
"What if she wasn't barren?"
Grace didn't answer.
She didn't have to.
The silence told him everything.
Alexander stepped backward as if she had struck him.
"You knew..."
"I knew enough."
His voice broke.
"You never even let me find out."
Grace reached toward him.
"You'll thank me someday."
Alexander recoiled.
"No."
His eyes filled for the first time in years.
"I don't think I'll ever forgive you."
He turned and walked away while the entire ballroom watched the Whitmore family begin to collapse.
Outside, he climbed into his car with only one thought repeating over and over.
Find Isabella.
Because if the impossible was true...
If she had been pregnant that night...
Then somewhere in America...
His child was already six years old.
And every birthday...
Every first word...
Every first step...
May you like
Every bedtime story...
Had happened without him.
