Doctors gave my six year old twins ten days to live, and for the first time in my life, every dollar, every weapon, every favor, and every ounce of power attached to my name meant absolutely nothing. 002

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Chapter 4

THEME:
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"No."

"Three weeks before she died."

"That's impossible."

She flinched at my voice.

Genevieve Mercer had died instantly when her car left Interstate 90 during a winter storm.

That was what the police report said.

What the coroner said.

What my people confirmed.

The vehicle had rolled down an embankment and burned.

There had been almost nothing recognizable afterward.

I had identified her through dental records and the serial number on her wedding ring.

I had buried a closed coffin.

Elena reached inside her coat again.

This time, Prescott removed a folded envelope from her before allowing her to touch it.

He placed it on my desk.

Inside was a medical report.

I saw Jonah's name first.

Then Blythe's.

The document was dated seven years earlier.

One year before they were born.

I looked up.

"What is this?"

Elena's voice trembled.

"The reason their treatment isn't working."

I read the first page.

Genetic screening.

Embryonic cell compatibility.

Marrow markers.

Several terms I understood.

Others I didn't.

Then I saw a phrase repeated three times.

Congenital receptor mutation.

"What does this mean?"

"It means their leukemia isn't behaving like ordinary leukemia."

"How do you know?"

"Because Genevieve knew."

My eyes lifted.

Elena glanced toward the hallway as if expecting someone to appear.

"She knew before they were born."

I stood very slowly.

"Start talking."

Elena remained silent for several seconds.

Then she said, "Your wife saved my life."

I waited.

"Seven years ago I was twenty three.

I was sleeping in shelters and working nights at a diner.

I had a younger sister named Sofia.

She was sixteen and sick with a rare blood disorder.

We had no insurance.

No family.

No money.

A doctor told us about a research program offering free treatment in exchange for genetic testing."

"Where?"

"Helixor Biomedical."

I knew the name.

Helixor was a small medical research company my holding group had invested in years earlier.

At the time, the investment had been insignificant compared with the rest of my portfolio.

Genevieve had taken an interest in it because her father had died of lymphoma.

Elena continued.

"They tested Sofia and me.

A few weeks later, Genevieve came to the clinic."

"My wife?"

"She wasn't there as a patient.

She was asking questions about the research."

"Why?"

"Because she had discovered that Helixor was using private genetic material from families without proper consent."

The room seemed to shrink.

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Table of Contents
Doctors gave my six year old twins ten days to live, and for the first time in my life, every dollar, every weapon, every favor, and every ounce of power attached to my name meant absolutely nothing. 002
TABLE OF CONTENTS 18
01 Chapter 1 02 Chapter 2 03 Chapter 3 04 Chapter 4 05 Chapter 5 06 Chapter 6 07 Chapter 7 08 Chapter 8 09 Chapter 9 10 Chapter 10 11 Chapter 11 12 Chapter 12 13 Chapter 13 14 Chapter 14 15 Chapter 15 16 Chapter 16 17 Chapter 17 18 Chapter 18

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