All I want to do is be by her side. I pace the hall, just outside where she is. I continuously rake my hands through my hair, praying to anyone above that she’ll be okay. Kids don’t get taken to the OR just for a cracked head. I’m not ready to lose her. I can’t lose her.
“Mackenzie.” I jump in surprise at the warmth of Baz’s hand on my shoulder. “Let’s sit down. Don’t wear yourself out.”
The dam I’ve been holding back suddenly breaks as I stare up at him. “This is my fault. I should’ve been watching her. Now look at her,” I hiss, pointing at the closed doors. “All my life, I’ve never been able to do anything right. How could I possibly think this was the one thing I’d get right? Taking care of a child? I’m in way over my head. She’s going to—”
Baz grasps my shoulders, throttling some sense into me. “She’s going to be just fine. They’re taking care of her. You didn’t know this would happen.”
“And that’s the problem,” I choke. “I should’ve stopped it from happening. Instead, I was with you. I was so focused on…all the shit that doesn’t even matter anymore, on Vincent, on the rest of the guys, Madison, my parents. I wasn’t looking out for the one person who needed me.”
Baz’s features soften. “Sit down, Mackenzie. You can’t control the world. Accidents happen. Just sit and breathe.”
I do as he says. I plop down in the chair and stare at the closed door with tears trailing down my cheeks.
“Ms. Wright, I have some good news, and I’m afraid some bad news.”
I jump to my feet and sway from the exertion, but Baz is there. He takes my hand, giving a firm squeeze, letting me know he isn’t going anywhere. “Okay, what’s the bad?”
“Ava’s lost a lot of blood. The doctor is certain she has a bleeding disorder, but until we do more tests, it could be any number of things. She’s going to need a transfusion since she wasn’t administered a blood-clotting agent soon enough.”
I slap a hand over my mouth, trying to hold back the sob. The nurse must notice my impending hysterics, so she cuts to the next set of news.
“The good news is, you are an exact blood match, Mom.”
She prattles on about something else, but that little tidbit gives me pause. “Wait.” I shake my head. “How is that possible?”
“Well, you’re her mother, so it’s not surprising—”
“I’m not her biological mother. Ava is adopted,” I cut her off, my brows tugging down.
The nurse cocks her head to the side, looking at me like I’m crazy. “Ms. Wright, you are an exact match. The blood samples. The only way that is possible is if you and Ava are related.” She glances at Baz quickly, as if realizing her mistake. “If you’d like to speak in private, I’m happy to do that and explain further.”
I feel Baz stiffen beside me. She thinks I’m hiding something from him? What the hell is going on?
“No, I don’t need to speak in private. He can hear this. I just need…I need you to explain. This doesn’t make any sense. There’s no way I can be related to Ava. I adopted her. I have no immediate family with children.”
“The DNA is a match, Ms. Wright. Unless you have a twin that birthed a child, I have no other logical explanation.”
My legs give out.
Baz’s strong hold keeps me upright as I process her words.
“Unless you have a twin that birthed a child.”
“Unless you have a twin that birthed a child.”
That can’t be right.
No. There is no way Madison had a baby. There is no way in hell that could’ve happened.
Flashes of the past hit me in quick spurts. Madison’s time away during the foreign exchange program. Her less than frequent calls home. When she got back, she was a totally different person. She’d changed. She wasn’t my twin anymore, but someone else entirely.
Could it be?
No. My parents would never keep something like that from me.
But what if they did? That would change everything. Everything I knew to be true about my parents and Madison.
And there is one question I need answers to.
Who is the father?
“I’ll give you both a minute.”
Baz helps me back into my seat, and I stare blankly ahead, trying to make sense of this. There has to be a mistake. It can’t be possible. Because what are the odds? What are the odds Ava is my sister’s daughter,