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\u201cThat\u2019s my point,\u201d Daniel said. \u201cThey aren\u2019t unrelated.\u201d<\/p>\n
I spoke up then, my voice trembling. \u201cDetective, my sister Emma\u2026 she has been trying to have a baby for five years. She finally got pregnant. This is her baby. It has to be.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMrs. Carter,\u201d Sanchez said gently, turning to me. \u201cWe checked the hospital admission records on our way up. Your sister, Emma Vance, was admitted six hours ago. But there\u2019s a discrepancy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat discrepancy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe intake nurse noted that Emma was fully dilated upon arrival, but she had no prenatal records on file with St. Mary\u2019s. She claimed her OB-GYN was Dr. Aris at the Evergreen Women\u2019s Center.\u201d<\/p>\n
I nodded. \u201cYes. That\u2019s where she went for all her checkups.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sanchez exchanged a dark look with one of the uniformed officers. \u201cThe Evergreen Women\u2019s Center has been closed for renovations for three months, Mrs. Carter. There are no doctors practicing there.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room spun. I gripped the edge of the table. \u201cThat\u2026 that can\u2019t be right. She sent me ultrasound pictures. She went to appointments.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOr she went somewhere she thought was a clinic,\u201d Daniel murmured.<\/p>\n
\u201cI need to examine the infant,\u201d Sanchez said, standing up. \u201cAnd I need to speak to your sister. If what Mr. Carter says is true, and if that clinic is involved, we are dealing with something far more dangerous than a mix-up.\u201d<\/p>\n
We walked back to Room 304. It felt like walking to a execution.<\/p>\n