PART 2
The woman was Claire Collins, Maria’s estranged daughter. The two had not spoken for eight months.
Claire informed Dr. Parker that the embryo had never come from an anonymous donor. It had been created five years earlier during fertility treatment she underwent with her former husband, Daniel. Following their divorce, the remaining embryos were supposed to stay frozen until both parties signed an agreement regarding their future.
Maria had secretly gained access to the clinic’s records by using an old authorization document Claire had once provided during a surgery. She then arranged for one embryo to be transferred to the overseas clinic.
“You stole my embryo,” Claire said, her voice breaking. “You carried my child without asking me.”
Maria’s expression crumbled. She admitted that after losing her husband, loneliness had overtaken her life. Claire had moved away after years of conflict, and Maria became consumed by the idea of restoring the family she felt had disappeared. When she discovered the embryos still existed, she convinced herself that carrying one would somehow repair everything.
“I thought when you saw the baby, you would forgive me,” Maria whispered.
Claire looked at the diaper bag. “You didn’t want forgiveness. You wanted leverage.”
The hospital’s surgical team soon arrived. The specialist explained that removing both the fetus and placenta would carry enormous risks. Because the placenta was attached near Maria’s bowel and iliac vessels, catastrophic blood loss was possible. Yet delaying surgery would almost certainly cost her life.
At last, Maria signed the consent documents.
Before the nurses wheeled her away, Claire stepped into the hallway and phoned Daniel. He reached the hospital forty minutes later, shocked and furious. He had never approved the embryo transfer. The hospital alerted both law enforcement and the American fertility clinic, which immediately launched an investigation into how the records had been released.
The surgery lasted nearly six hours.
The surgeons removed the fetus, repaired a damaged artery, and left part of the placenta behind because fully removing it could have caused fatal hemorrhaging. Maria required twelve units of blood and remained on a ventilator for two days.
Claire stayed at the hospital throughout the night. It was not because she had forgiven her mother, but because she could not bring herself to let Maria face death alone.
When Maria finally regained consciousness, Claire was sitting beside her bed.
“The baby?” Maria whispered.
Claire’s jaw tightened. “There was never going to be a baby to bring home.”
Maria slowly turned her face toward the window.
Then Claire set a sealed envelope on top of the blanket.
“This is from the fertility clinic,” she said. “They found out who helped you.”
