Emma rarely spoke about either of them.
Her life had narrowed and deepened around Grace.
The baby had dark curls, serious eyes, and a habit of gripping Emma’s finger while sleeping. Sometimes Emma looked at her and saw traces of her mother. Other times she saw only Grace.
Margaret became a devoted grandmother.
She moved into the guesthouse and spent mornings walking Grace through the garden.
One quiet September afternoon, Daniel arrived carrying another sealed envelope.
Emma was sitting on the terrace while Grace slept in a wicker cradle.
“What is that?” she asked.
Daniel did not sit down.
“It was found inside your father’s private safe at the old transportation warehouse.”
“I thought we emptied that safe years ago.”
“There was a false panel.”
Emma took the envelope.
The handwriting belonged to her mother.
For Emma, when the truth becomes necessary.
Her hands began to shake.
Inside was a letter and a cassette tape.
Daniel had brought an old recorder.
Emma inserted the tape.
Static filled the air.
Then Evelyn Calloway’s voice emerged.
Emma had not heard her mother speak in nearly twenty years.
My darling girl, if you are listening to this, then something has happened involving the embryo your father and I preserved.
Emma covered her mouth.
Evelyn continued.
After you were born, your father and I wanted another child. We created two embryos. One became you. The other was stored because my health became uncertain.
Your father believed the remaining embryo should be destroyed after my diagnosis. I could not agree.
There was a pause on the tape.
Emma heard her mother breathe.
I asked Daniel to protect the records. I also changed the family trust. Your father believed the condition concerning a future descendant was about preserving the company. It was not.
Emma looked at Daniel.
He appeared stunned.
The recording continued.
The trust was designed to protect you from a man who might value the company more than he valued you. But there is something even your father did not know.
The second embryo was not genetically his.
Emma stopped breathing.
Years before you were born, your father learned he might be infertile. We used a donor. He believed both embryos came from the same donor.
They did not.
The clinic made an error during fertilization. Years later, I discovered the second embryo had been created using genetic material from someone else.
Emma’s heart pounded.
The clinic offered to destroy it. I could not. Whatever the mistake, that embryo was innocent.
The tape clicked softly.
I investigated the donor.
His name was Jonathan Mercer.
Daniel dropped into the chair.
Emma looked at him.
“Mercer?”
The same surname as Adrian’s attorney.
The tape continued.
Jonathan Mercer was Charles Mercer’s older brother. He died young, before he ever knew an embryo created from his donation remained in storage.
Emma stared at Daniel.
Charles had represented Adrian throughout the marriage.
