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is eyes fixed on the clipboard in his hands. "The fetal
ned her throat. Beneath the thin hospital blanket, her lower abdomen ached with a dull, hollow throb. Her righ
h, feeling the cold air
n, cracked at the edges. "I called his private line ten
rimmed glasses, his gaze dar
mured, his tone stiff with professional discomfort. "He stated that Mr. Baker is
rained from her fingertips, leavi
orporate
soft vibration. It was an automated notification from Instagram, flagging
ngers trembling slightl
nter of the frame stood Aaron Baker, wearing a crisp linen shirt unbuttoned at the collar. He was
is widowed sister-in-law, whose h
iological daughter. Charline was wearing a matching ivory
family getaway. Thank you for
ding ring was missing. Only a faint, pale indentation remaine
in her throat. Three years of marriage. Three years of managing his Long Island estate, running his h
en a rehearsa
her phone clutched in one hand. When she checked Aliana's vital signs, she reminded her that
y," the **head nurse** explained gently. "Your doctor will determine whe
have any desire to leave the hospital just to return to an empty marriage. F
medication, attending her follow-up examinations, and allowing her body the time it needed
and called her best friend Maya. Her voice was calm as she said, "Maya, please
ding dates, financial details, and every suspicious incident she could remember. She wou
ut she knew one thing with absolute certainty: she would no lo
soft click of the room door. Assuming she was asleep, **the head nurse** entered quietly to check the IV lin
e** stepped into the corridor and pu
ain if not for the name that rea
inters. I u
ine W
ion. Why was the head nurse speaking to Charline about her care? What business
llow. Her fingers closed around it, and she unlocked the screen as quietl
red her voice, apparently convinced
cted," she whispered into her phone. "The original surgical chart will not ap
rs tightened a
inat
ed far beyond what a grieving sister-in-law should reasonably expect. Now she was hearing a hospit
rriage? And why had she been able to give instructions about
nd demand answers, but anger would accomplish nothing if it cost her the o
the general system is concerned, there's nothing for him t
ead nurse** murmured, "Of course, Ms.
he corridor. Only then did she stop the recording. She saved the file under a neutral name a
, but her thoughts h
tion about her pregnancy and surgery. Charline had enough influence to reach into the hospital, and the head nurse was willing to coo
the proper channels, and find out who had authorized the restrictions. She woul
baby, Aliana felt something other th
nd whatever time it took to uncover the truth and dismantle the co
d her eyes again. She listened as **the head nurse** checked her monitor
believe she had
moment sooner. She would recover properly, get her affairs in or
tly for him to come home. Charline Winters evidently believed tha
re both
Baker estate in Long Island, she would
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