The moment Daniel said Helga's name, I felt the pieces shift again.
“Why would she access it?”
“We don't know.”
“Can the police find out?”
“They're trying.”
“What did they find?”
“An access log.”
“Anything else?”
“A storage container was empty.”
I stared at him.
“The embryo?”
“Possibly.”
My hands went cold.
“How could she take it?”
“We don't know whether she physically removed it.”
“Then what does empty mean?”
“The storage record says the container was opened and later logged as transferred.”
“To where?”
“We're still waiting for the destination record.”
I looked out the car window.
Everything around me seemed ordinary.
Traffic lights.
Gas stations.
People carrying groceries.
My entire life had become a hidden network of documents and secrets, while the rest of the world continued as though nothing had changed.
When we reached Daniel's office, he had already received another message.
He opened it.
Then he looked at me.
“The embryo was transferred.”
“To where?”
“A private facility.”
“Which one?”
He gave me the name.
It was outside the country.
I stared at him.
“Can they do that?”
“Not legally.”
“But they did.”
“Yes.”
“Who authorized it?”
“The request was made under a company associated with Julian.”
My stomach turned.
“So Julian took it.”
“That's what the records suggest.”
“But the access code was Helga's.”
“Which suggests she was involved.”
I sat down.
“What were they planning to do with it?”
Daniel didn't answer.
He didn't need to.
I already knew the possibilities were terrible.
The court hearing had been moved forward because of the new evidence.
Sophie was now placed under protective supervision.
The unborn child was subject to emergency legal protection.
Julian's attorney requested another hearing.
This time, Daniel was ready.
The courtroom was packed.
Julian looked different.
No confidence.
No polished calm.
Just exhaustion.
Helga sat behind him.
She looked directly at me.
For years, she had smiled at me across dinner tables.
Now her expression was cold.
The judge entered.
Daniel presented the new evidence.
The missing embryo.
The unauthorized transfer.
The foreign facility.
The company connected to Julian.
Then he presented the access logs.
Helga's code.
Helga's name.
The judge looked at her.
“Mrs. Bennett, do you have an explanation?”
Helga's attorney stood.
“My client denies involvement in any improper transfer.”
Daniel presented the records.
The access code.
The timestamp.
The surveillance image.
Helga was visible entering the facility.
The courtroom went silent.
Helga looked at Julian.
He looked away.
The judge asked again.
“Mrs. Bennett?”
She said nothing.
Daniel continued.
“We also have financial records showing payment to the facility.”
Helga's attorney objected.
The judge allowed the evidence.
I watched Helga's face.
For the first time, I saw fear.
Not guilt.
Fear.
Then Daniel introduced another document.
A communication between Helga and a private reproductive agency.
The message was short.
Keep the second embryo separate until Claire signs.
My breath caught.
The judge read it twice.
I felt tears rise.
The embryo had been leverage.
Not just for money.
For my signature.
They intended to hold my own child as bargaining material.
The judge ordered an immediate investigation.
Julian's attorney asked for a recess.
The judge denied it.
Then the prosecutor's office announced that a criminal investigation was being opened.
Helga was escorted from the courtroom.
Klaus left through another entrance.
Julian remained seated.
I looked at him.
He wouldn't meet my eyes.
After the hearing, he approached me.
“I didn't know about the transfer.”
I stared at him.
“You created the company.”
“Yes.”
“You moved the embryo.”
“Yes.”
“You signed the documents.”
“Yes.”
“You knew my mother was involved.”
He swallowed.
“I didn't know she would move it.”
“But you knew she had access.”
“Yes.”
I shook my head.
“You keep saying you didn't know.”
He looked at me.
“I was afraid of what she'd do.”
“You were afraid of her.”
“Yes.”
“But you were never afraid of what she'd do to me.”
His eyes filled.
“I was.”
“No.”
I stepped back.
“You were afraid of losing the money.”
“That isn't fair.”
“It is.”
He couldn't answer.
Then Daniel approached.
“We need to leave.”
I followed him.
Outside, reporters had gathered.
I kept my head down.
The story had become public.
Not every detail.
But enough.
A fertility scandal.
A disputed embryo.
A wealthy family.
A hidden trust.
I hated the attention.
I hated seeing my private pain reduced to headlines.
But I also understood something.
The secrecy had protected them.
Public scrutiny made secrecy harder.
That evening, Sophie called.
“Are you safe?”
“Yes.”
“Me too.”
She paused.
“Claire?”
“Yes?”
“I need to tell you something.”
I waited.
“I went into labor.”
My heart stopped.
“What?”
“Not fully.”
She was crying.
“The doctor says it could happen early.”
I stood.
“How early?”
“Possibly within days.”
I looked at Daniel.
He understood immediately.
“We're coming.”
“No.”
“Sophie.”
“Someone followed me yesterday.”
My blood went cold.
“Who?”
“I don't know.”
“Did you tell security?”
“Yes.”
“Where are you now?”
She gave me the location.
Daniel was already reaching for his coat.
We drove there.
Sophie was in a protected medical facility.
She looked terrified.
A doctor explained that stress and complications had increased the risk of premature labor.
“The baby is stable,” she said.
“For now.”
“Yes.”
I stood beside the bed.
Sophie looked at me.
“If something happens…”
“Don't.”
“If the baby comes early, I want you there.”
I froze.
“Why?”
“Because it's yours.”
I reached for her hand.
She squeezed mine.
“I know what I did.”
“You were manipulated.”
“I still made choices.”
“So did Julian.”
She looked at me.
“I don't want the baby raised in fear.”
Neither did I.
Outside the room, Daniel received another call.
He listened.
Then his expression changed.
“What?”
He hung up.
“The foreign facility has responded.”
“What did they say?”
“The embryo was collected.”
“By whom?”
He looked at me.
“A woman using the name Claire Bennett.”
My stomach dropped.
“That wasn't me.”
“I know.”
“Who used my name?”
“We don't know.”
Then Sophie gasped.
The monitor beside her changed rhythm.
A nurse rushed in.
“Doctor.”
Everything happened quickly.
The doctor ordered preparation for delivery.
Sophie gripped my hand.
“Don't leave.”
“I won't.”
She looked at me through tears.
“I want the baby to know the truth.”
“You'll tell the baby yourself.”
She shook her head.
“I hope so.”
I squeezed her hand.
“You will.”
The room filled with nurses.
Daniel stepped outside.
I stayed.
For the first time, the legal battle, the inheritance, the forged documents and the family conspiracy disappeared.
There was only Sophie.
And the child.
My child.
The child they had turned into evidence, leverage and property.
The child who had never asked for any of this.
Hours later, the doctor returned.
“The baby is stable.”
I exhaled.
“But we have a problem.”
“What?”
“The birth may happen sooner than expected.”
“How soon?”
“Tonight.”
I looked at Sophie.
She closed her eyes.
Then she whispered:
“I want Claire to hold the baby first.”
The doctor looked at me.
I couldn't speak.
Outside the room, my phone vibrated.
A message from an unknown number.
It contained one photograph.
A storage container.
A handwritten label.
And beneath it, a sentence:
You still haven't found the other one.
I stared at the screen.
There was another embryo.
And whoever had it knew exactly what they were doing.
Click here to continue reading: PART 13: THE MESSAGE THAT WAS NEVER MEANT FOR CLAIRE
The Toast My Husband Made in German Exposed a Secret He Never Expected His Wife to Understand
Part 12 of 26
