The Doctor Knows Too Much

The doctor set his black bag on the glass table.

“Who needs the test?” he asked.

“Miss Sophia,” Christian said. “And Mr. and Mrs. Resington.”

Arthur laughed too loudly. “Christian, this is really too much! We already did the test! I have the paper right here!”

“Then this will be quick,” Christian said.

Eleanor grabbed her husband’s sleeve. Her whole body was shaking. “Arthur, do something!”

Arthur said nothing. He just stared at the doctor.

The doctor stared back.

Sophia noticed it right away.

The doctor’s eyes moved from Arthur to the DNA report on the table. His face went stiff, just for a second. Then he smiled politely and opened his bag.

He knows something, Sophia thought.

“Miss Sophia, please sit,” the doctor said. “I only need a small blood sample.”

Sophia sat down on the sofa and held out her arm. The doctor tied a band around it. His hands were cold and a little shaky.

“Sorry,” he said quietly. “Long night.”

Sophia looked at his name tag. Dr. Harold Weiss.

Something clicked in her mind. She had seen that name before. On the DNA report. In the tiny print at the bottom.

Test performed by: Dr. Harold Weiss.

Her heart jumped.

But she stayed calm. She kept her face blank and let him draw the blood.

Across the room, Lily was watching with wide eyes. She chewed her lip until it was red.

“How long will the result take?” Christian asked.

“Three hours, sir,” Dr. Weiss said. “I will use the fast lab at the Rolark Medical Center.”

“Good,” Christian said. “Mark will go with you. He will not leave your side until the results are in my hands.”

Dr. Weiss’s smile froze. “Of course. That is not necessary, but of course.”

Mark stepped forward and smiled without warmth. “It’s my pleasure, doctor.”

The two men left.

The room felt heavy. Nobody said a word.

Then Eleanor pointed at Sophia and screamed.

“This is your fault! You have been here one hour and you are already destroying everything!”

“Eleanor,” Christian said. “One more word and I will have you removed from this room.”

Eleanor shut her mouth. Her face turned purple.

Christian looked at Sophia’s cheek. The blood had stopped, but it looked swollen.

“Sit here,” he said. “Do not move.”

He walked to the kitchen door and called out, “Bring ice. Now.”

A young maid ran in, holding a small towel filled with ice. Her hands were shaking. She looked at Sophia with wide, scared eyes.

“Sorry, Miss,” the maid whispered. Then she looked at Eleanor and quickly looked away.

Sophia took the ice. “Thank you.”

The maid gave a small nod and rushed out of the room.

Sophia pressed the ice to her cheek. It felt good.

Then she noticed something odd.

The maid had dropped a tiny folded note on the arm of the sofa.

Sophia looked around. Nobody was watching. Lily was busy glaring at her. Arthur and Eleanor were whispering in the corner.

Slowly, Sophia picked up the note and slipped it into her sleeve.

Christian sat down in the armchair across from her. He crossed his long legs and studied her face.

“You didn’t cry,” he said.

“No.”

“Why not?”

Sophia shrugged. “Crying does not help. It only makes them happy.”

Christian’s lip curled up, just a little.

“You are very strange,” he said.

“You are the one who is strange,” Sophia said. “Why are you helping me? Everyone says you are cold and mean. You don’t help people.”

Lily gasped from across the room. “How dare you speak to him like that!”

Christian did not even look at her.

“I hate liars,” he said to Sophia. “That is all.”

But his amber eyes lingered on her a little too long.

Sophia looked away first.

Twenty minutes passed. The mansion was so quiet that Sophia could hear the clock ticking on the wall.

Then Lily stood up.

“I need to use the bathroom,” she said sweetly.

“Sit down,” Christian said.

“But I really need—”

“Sit.”

Lily sat back down. Her smile was gone.

A moment later, Arthur’s phone buzzed. He looked at the screen. His face went even whiter.

“Excuse me,” he said. “I must take this call.”

“Stay here,” Christian said.

“It’s business!”

“Then answer it here.”

Arthur swallowed hard. He turned away and pressed the phone to his ear.

“Yes?” he whispered. “No, not now. I said not now!”

Sophia watched him carefully. His hands were trembling. Sweat dripped down his neck.

He was not talking about business.

Finally, Arthur hung up. He forced a smile. “Wrong number.”

Christian did not smile back.

Sophia used the moment to open the maid’s note under her sleeve. She read it in one quick glance.

Miss, the test is fake. I heard Mr. Arthur and the doctor talking last night. They changed the results. You are NOT their daughter. Please run before it is too late. — Anna

Sophia’s blood turned cold.

She read it twice. Then three times.

Fake?

She looked up at the DNA report on the coffee table. The red stamp. The 99.99%.

If it is fake, then why did they call me here? Why bring a stranger into their house? Why pay me to be a maid?

It made no sense.

Unless…

Unless someone wanted her here for another reason.

Sophia’s eyes moved to Arthur. He was staring at her with a strange, greedy look. It was not hate. It was something worse.

He looked like a man who was about to win a bet.

They did not bring me here to hide me, Sophia realized. They brought me here to use me.

Just then, the front door opened.

Mark walked in, alone.

He looked pale. His hands were empty.

“Mr. Rolark,” he said, breathing hard. “We have a problem.”

Christian stood up slowly. “Where is the doctor?”

“He is gone, sir.”

The room went completely still.

“What do you mean, gone?” Christian asked.

“I turned around for two seconds at the hospital door,” Mark said. “When I looked back, Dr. Weiss had vanished. His car is still in the lot. His phone is on the ground. And the blood sample is missing.”

Arthur let out a tiny breath, almost like a laugh.

Christian’s eyes snapped to him.

“You did this,” Christian said.

“I have no idea what you mean!” Arthur said, but his voice cracked.

“You knew he would run,” Christian said, stepping closer. “That is why you looked so calm.”

Arthur shook his head wildly. “No! I swear!”

Eleanor grabbed Lily’s hand. Both of them looked scared, but Lily’s eyes had a small, hidden spark.

Sophia noticed it.

Lily was not scared. She was pleased.

Christian turned to Sophia. His face was hard, but his voice was soft.

“Sophia. Come with me.”

“Where?”

“Somewhere safe. This house is not safe for you.”

“No!” Eleanor shouted. “She is our daughter! You cannot take her!”

“Your daughter?” Christian repeated. “A minute ago, she was a slum girl and a thief.”

Eleanor had no reply.

Sophia stood up. Her legs felt shaky, but she stayed calm.

She looked at Christian. She looked at the door. She looked at Lily, who was smiling faintly now.

Something is very wrong here.

And in her sleeve, Anna’s note felt heavier than a stone.