Chapter 2

The midwife's words sent a shockwave through the hallway.

I didn't let the moment pass.

"So," I said, walking slowly toward her. "You're admitting this kid is Bella's. And that she used stolen goods as payment?"

"I didn't say stolen..." the midwife stammered.

"A Cartier bracelet," I said, cutting her off. "Worth thirty grand. Right?"

Her eyes widened. "How did you know..."

The neighbors started whispering.

"A thirty-thousand-dollar bracelet?"

"Where would Bella get that kind of money?"

"Had to be stolen..."

I kept coming. "What else? Besides the bracelet, what else did she leave you?"

The midwife looked at me, really scared now. "She... she left a copy of your ID. And a rent receipt for this apartment..."

"A rent receipt." I repeated the words, then turned to my parents. "My rent receipt. How did Bella get her hands on it?"

My mother's face was pale. "Elena, this has to be a mistake..."

"A mistake?" I laughed, a cold, empty sound. "She steals my identity, steals my jewelry, then dumps her bastard on my doorstep. You call that a mistake?"

My father tried to smooth things over. "Maybe she just..."

"Just what? Wanted to ruin my reputation?" I looked around at the neighbors. "Now the whole building knows Elena is a slut who got knocked up, right?"

I picked up the sculpture again. This time, I pointed it at the midwife's throat.

"Let me paint you a picture." My voice was dangerously low. "A young girl disappears after giving birth. Then a shady midwife shows up with the baby and the girl's ID. Smells like human trafficking, doesn't it? Maybe even organ harvesting. That's a story the cops would eat alive."

The crowd started to get agitated.

"Oh my God..."

"That's horrible..."

"We should call the police..."

The midwife completely fell apart. "No! It's not like that! Bella's alive! She's at the clinic!"

"Prove it," I pressed. "Take us there. Now."

"Elena," my mother grabbed my arm. "Calm down. Let's all go and see..."

I shook her off. "You go. I'm not going."

"What?" my father said, stunned. "Why not?"

"Because if it's a trap, I don't plan on dying in some filthy clinic." I shrugged. "You go make sure Bella's safe. And give her this kid back while you're at it."

I shoved the baby into my mother's arms.

"But Elena..."

"No 'buts'." I turned and walked back to my apartment. "You have two hours." The words were ice. "If I don't hear from you, I'm calling the police. I'll tell them an organ trafficking ring has my family."

The midwife was frantic. "You can't do that!"

"Of course I can." I stopped at the door and looked back at her. "Unless you can prove everything is legal. Your license. The clinic's license. And a birth certificate for this baby."

Her mouth hung open. She couldn't say a word.

"Go on," I said to my parents. "Go see your precious little girl. Ask her why she was using my ID."

The door clicked shut behind me.

I leaned against it, listening to the chaos of footsteps and arguments fade away.

Ten minutes later, the hall was quiet.

I moved fast.

The emergency cash from the shoebox.

My grandmother's locket.

A few unfinished canvases.

I stuffed everything of value into two suitcases.

Just as I was finishing, the landlady knocked.

"Elena? Are you okay? Those people..."

Her concern was a world away from how she'd kicked me out in my last life.

I opened the door and handed her a note. "Linda, if anyone else delivers a 'package' for me, throw it in the trash. I'm not coming back."

"What? You're moving?" she asked, surprised by my suitcases.

"I am." I dragged the cases toward the stairs. "As of today, this address has nothing to do with me."

"But your deposit..."

"Keep it. For the cleaning."

I'd just gotten downstairs when my phone rang.

Unknown number.

"Elena?" It was my mother's voice.

The background was loud, and I could hear a baby crying.

"What?"

"You monster!" Her voice was pure hysteria. "Where are you? What are we supposed to do with this... this baby?"

My father's curses were just background noise.

And Bella? The architect of this whole nightmare?

She was long gone.

Just like she was in my last life.

"That's your problem," I said, about to hang up.

"Elena! Wait!" my mother screamed. "You can't treat your family like this! You..."

I ended the call and crushed the SIM card under my heel.