Chapter 3 - The Missing Hospital File
Dr. Brooks refused to discuss confidential records casually over the phone.
Good.
For the first time, I needed people around me who respected rules.
We met the next morning with an attorney.
Nathan brought only information he was legally permitted to disclose and explained where additional records could be requested properly.
Vanessa’s former surname was **Vanessa Mercer**.
Three years earlier, a Vanessa Mercer had worked for a private laboratory that processed certain samples for the hospital.
My mouth went dry.
“What kind of samples?”
Nathan looked at me.
“Daniel, don't jump ahead.”
He was right.
I already wanted to.
Rachel had been sick for months before she died.
Tests.
Blood draws.
Specialists.
A complicated diagnosis.
Vanessa working around medical samples sounded horrifying.
But it proved nothing by itself.
Nathan continued.
Rachel had approached him privately after noticing inconsistencies in copies of her records.
Not her diagnosis.
A separate set of laboratory entries connected to Sophie.
“What tests?”
“I can't responsibly answer from memory.”
So we requested the available records through the proper channels.
Meanwhile, I confronted nobody.
Vanessa texted constantly.
**Come home.**
**We can explain this.**
**Rachel was paranoid near the end.**
That last message made me furious.
Rachel had been sick.
She had never been stupid.
Then Vanessa sent something stranger.
**Whatever you find, remember Sophie is innocent.**
I stared at those words.
Why would Sophie need to be declared innocent?
I showed my attorney.
“Don't answer emotionally.”
I didn't answer at all.
Two days later, Nathan called.
Some archived records had been located.
There had indeed been testing involving Sophie.
But the file contained a discrepancy.
One page showed a sample identifier.
Another showed the same test under a different identifier.
Someone had corrected it manually.
The initials beside the correction were faded.
But the date mattered.
It happened during Vanessa Mercer’s employment.
Still not proof Vanessa made the change.
Then Nathan found something Rachel had left with him personally.
A sealed copy of a laboratory request.
On the back, Rachel had written:
**This is why she keeps asking about Sophie.**
My hands started trembling.
The request wasn't for Rachel.
It wasn't even primarily medical.
It was for a relationship test.
May you like
A DNA test.
And one of the names listed on the original request had been covered with correction fluid.
