“Eight months after divorcing me because I “couldn’t give him a family,”

“For what?”

“Officially? Medical consulting.”

“And unofficially?”

“We found correspondence.”

My skin turned cold.

“What correspondence?”

She opened the folder farther.

Printed emails.

Some were heavily redacted.

One was between Dr. Sloane and an address associated with Patricia Brooks.

Ryan’s mother.

I read the first line.

Subject: Patient C

Patient C.

Carter.

Me.

Another line.

Emotional dependency remains high after second loss. Recommend proceeding before she requests independent review.

My vision blurred.

I read it twice.

Then a third time.

“What does that mean?”

Naomi shook her head.

“We don’t know yet.”

Another email.

R is becoming impatient. L remains willing.

R.

Ryan.

L.

Lauren.

My heart began pounding.

“What was Lauren willing to do?”

“That’s the question.”

I kept turning pages.

Then one document stopped me.

It was a cryogenic inventory report from Lakeshore Reproductive Medicine.

Six embryos created.

Two unsuccessful transfers.

One nonviable.

Remaining inventory—

I counted.

Then counted again.

Two.

Not three.

“Naomi.”

“I saw it.”

“There were three.”

“I know.”

“One is missing.”

Naomi sat beside me.

I could hear my daughter breathing in the bassinet.