Chapter 9: The Doctor Who Sold Our Family
At 8:30 the following morning, I stood outside a private medical clinic holding Piper and Poppy.
I hadn't slept.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw the message on the archive computer.
Someone knew where my daughters slept.
Someone had entered our home.
And someone had been manipulating their medical records since before they were born.
Tyler stood beside me.
He looked exhausted.
Michael had arranged for Daniel to contact the authorities, and we were now accompanied by two plainclothes officers.
Dr. Samuel Reeves was scheduled to see patients at nine.
When the receptionist called his name, Tyler immediately stepped forward.
“I'm here to see him.””
The receptionist looked at her computer.
“Do you have an appointment?””
“Tell him Tyler Carter is here.””
She made a phone call.
Less than a minute later, a door opened.
A silver-haired doctor appeared.
He looked at Tyler.
Then at me.
And immediately tried to close the door.
Daniel placed his hand against it.
“Dr. Reeves, we'd like to ask you some questions.””
The doctor forced a smile.
“I'm afraid I don't have time.””
Tyler stepped closer.
“You tested my daughters.””
Dr. Reeves looked at him.
“I don't know what you're talking about.””
“Then perhaps you can explain why your name appears on a laboratory report involving my family.””
The doctor's expression changed.
He glanced at the officers.
“Come inside.””
His office smelled of coffee and antiseptic.
A framed photograph of Robert Carter hung behind his desk.
I pointed at it.
“Are you friends with my father-in-law?””
Dr. Reeves looked at the photograph.
“We were colleagues.””
“Were you involved in the arrangements surrounding my delivery?””
He remained silent.
Tyler placed the copied laboratory report on the desk.
“Tell us why my father's genetic sample was used.””
Dr. Reeves sat down slowly.
“Mr. Carter, there are things about your family you don't understand.””
Tyler leaned forward.
“Then explain them.””
The doctor removed his glasses.
“Robert approached me several years ago. He wanted to establish the biological relationships among certain members of his family.””
“Why?””
“Because of an inheritance dispute.””
Michael interrupted.
“The eighteen-million-dollar trust?””
Dr. Reeves nodded.
“Robert believed the trust had been structured incorrectly. He wanted to prove that certain beneficiaries were not biologically related to the family.””
I looked at him.
“And my daughters?””
“Your daughters were born during a period when several competing claims existed.””
I stared.
“What claims?””
The doctor opened a drawer and removed a thick envelope.
Inside were several DNA reports.
He spread them across the desk.
“The original tests showed that Piper and Poppy were fraternal twins.””
I blinked.
“Fraternal?””
“Yes. They shared a mother but had different genetic profiles.””
Tyler frowned.
“That's impossible. They were born minutes apart.””
“It's rare, but it can happen. It's called heteropaternal superfecundation. Two eggs are fertilized by sperm from different men during the same reproductive cycle.””
I felt the room tilt.
“Are you saying both girls could have different fathers?””
Dr. Reeves nodded.
“That's what the original results indicated.””
Tyler stared at him.
“Who were the fathers?””
The doctor looked down.
“The first report identified you as Piper's biological father.””
Tyler nodded slowly.
“And Poppy?””
Dr. Reeves hesitated.
“David Bennett.””
Michael closed his eyes.
I looked at him.
“Then the report was real?””
“Possibly,” Dr. Reeves replied.
“But there's another problem.””
He pulled out a third report.
“The laboratory received a second sample from an unidentified male. That sample was later substituted for the original donor sample.””
Daniel leaned forward.
“Who authorized it?””
The doctor swallowed.
“I did.””
Silence.
Tyler grabbed the edge of the desk.
“You changed my daughters' DNA results?””
“I was paid to alter the records.””
“By whom?””
Dr. Reeves looked toward the door.
“Robert.””
Michael slammed his hand against the desk.
“Why?””
The doctor took a shaky breath.
“Because Robert didn't want David to have any legal connection to the Carter family.””
I stared at him.
“But why would he care about David's child?””
The doctor's eyes moved toward me.
“Because David's daughter would have had a claim to the inheritance through Jack's line.””
Tyler looked confused.
“Jack was David's son. What does that have to do with Poppy?””
Dr. Reeves opened another document.
“Jack had a daughter. Olivia. She was entitled to a substantial share of the estate.””
I remembered the conversation in Olivia's apartment.
“Then why did Robert need my daughters?””
The doctor looked directly at me.
“Because he wanted to create additional beneficiaries under his control.””
Michael's expression darkened.
“He wanted to use the twins to challenge the existing trust.””
Dr. Reeves nodded.
“Exactly. If the records showed the girls belonged to different branches of the family, Robert could argue that the original distribution was invalid.””
Tyler stared at him.
“And you helped him?””
“I was threatened.””
“You were paid,” Daniel corrected.
The doctor lowered his head.
For a moment, nobody spoke.
Then he reached into the envelope and removed one final document.
“This is the original report. It was never altered.””
I took it.
The results were clear.
Piper's biological father: Tyler Carter.
Poppy's biological father: David Bennett.
I looked at my husband.
He seemed devastated.
But then Dr. Reeves said something else.
“There is one more result you need to understand.””
I turned.
“What?””
He pointed to a separate section.
“Both girls share a genetic marker that is extremely uncommon. It indicates a close paternal relationship between the two men.””
Michael frowned.
“They're twins.””
“Yes, but this marker suggests something more specific.””
Dr. Reeves looked at Tyler.
“Tyler Carter and David Bennett may share a biological father.””
Tyler's face went pale.
“They're not brothers.””
Michael looked at him.
“No. David and I are identical twins.””
The doctor shook his head.
“Then someone has lied about the Bennett family, too.””
Before anyone could ask another question, the office door opened.
A woman walked in.
She was wearing a dark green coat and carrying a large envelope.
I recognized her immediately.
Linda Carter.
Tyler stood.
“Mom?””
She ignored him.
Instead, she walked directly toward Dr. Reeves.
“You were supposed to destroy those records.””
The doctor stood up.
“Linda, I won't take the blame for this anymore.””
She slapped the envelope onto the desk.
“Then perhaps you should explain why you falsified the first test.””
Dr. Reeves looked stunned.
“What are you talking about?””
Linda turned toward me.
“Emily, I need you to listen carefully.””
I held the twins closer.
“I'm listening.””
She looked at Tyler.
Then at Michael.
Finally, she whispered:
“Piper and Poppy have been used as pawns because Robert believes one of them is the key to finding his missing daughter.””
Tyler frowned.
“What missing daughter?””
Linda's eyes filled with tears.
“Robert had a daughter before he married me.””
I stared at her.
“Who?””
Linda opened the envelope.
Inside was a photograph of a young woman holding a newborn baby.
The woman's face looked strangely familiar.
Then Linda placed a birth certificate beside it.
The mother's name was printed clearly.
*SUSAN MILLER.*
The father's name was Robert Carter.
And the child's name was—
*OLIVIA CARTER.*
I looked toward the door.
But Olivia wasn't there.
Linda leaned closer and whispered:
“Emily, the girl you've been calling Olivia isn't Jack's daughter.””
Tyler's mouth fell open.
“Then whose daughter is she?””
Linda looked at me.
“She's Robert's firstborn child.””
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Then she delivered the final blow.
“And she's the person who switched your daughters' DNA samples.””
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