CHAPTER 6 — THE WOMAN IN WHITE
Khloe woke to the sound of rain against the windows.
Her abdomen ached.
A monitor pulsed beside her bed.
Dr. Reed stood nearby, reading the fetal scan.
“My baby?”
“Her heartbeat has stabilized.”
Khloe began to cry.
Dr. Reed squeezed her hand.
“You’re not out of danger, but she’s fighting.”
The door opened quietly.
A woman in a white hospital coat entered.
She wore a mask and carried a medication tray.
“Pain relief,” she said.
Dr. Reed frowned.
“I didn’t order anything.”
The woman stopped.
For one second, no one moved.
Then she dropped the tray and ran.
Dr. Reed pressed the alarm.
Security officers chased the woman through the corridor, but she disappeared into a service stairwell.
On the floor beside Khloe’s bed lay a syringe.
Dr. Reed picked it up carefully.
The label had been removed.
Khloe stared at it.
“What was inside?”
“We’ll test it.”
Gabriel entered minutes later.
When he saw the syringe, his face tightened.
“This was not only about the attack,” Dr. Reed said. “Someone wanted access to Khloe after she survived.”
Gabriel ordered a guard outside every entrance.
Khloe watched him pace.
“Uncle Gabriel.”
He stopped.
“Marcus thought the baby wasn’t his.”
Gabriel looked at her sharply.
“How do you know?”
“He accused me months ago.”
The room went silent.
“He said someone mailed him anonymous fertility records,” Khloe continued. “I told him they were false. He pretended to believe me.”
Gabriel sat beside her.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because I wanted my marriage to survive.”
Gabriel’s expression softened.
Khloe looked away.
“That was my mistake.”
A laboratory technician entered carrying the syringe results.
Dr. Reed read the report.
Her face changed immediately.
“What is it?” Gabriel asked.
“The drug would not have killed Khloe instantly.”
Khloe swallowed.
“What would it have done?”
May you like
Dr. Reed looked toward the fetal monitor.
“It would have stopped the baby’s heart.”
