Chapter 2: The Race Against Time
“Lock down the floor,” the doctor suddenly ordered.
The nurse’s eyes widened. “No—don’t you see? That’s exactly what they want!”
The guards hesitated, unsure who to follow.
“What mistake?” the father pressed urgently. “Tell us the truth!”
The nurse took a shaky breath. “Earlier today, another newborn… same blood type, same condition… there was a medication error. The dosage was wrong.”
The mother gasped softly.
“They tried to fix it,” the nurse continued, “but the baby didn’t make it. Instead of reporting it, someone changed records. Swapped IDs. Your baby—” she looked down at the infant in her arms “—was marked to replace the one who died.”
“That’s insane,” the father said, though doubt crept into his voice.
“I checked the logs,” she insisted. “Your baby was never scheduled for transfer. Someone added it manually. And the doctor overseeing it—” she turned slowly toward the older man “—was you.”
The room froze.
The doctor’s calm demeanor hardened. “You’re making dangerous accusations.”
“Then check the system,” she shot back. “Right now.”
A tense silence followed. Finally, the father rushed to the computer terminal in the room. His hands shook as he navigated the records.
“Here,” he said, his voice breaking. “This entry… it was added an hour ago.”
The mother looked at the doctor, horror dawning in her eyes.
“You were going to take her,” she whispered.
The doctor exhaled slowly, as if shedding a mask. “You don’t understand the pressure—”
“Don’t,” the father snapped. “Don’t you dare justify this.”
Sirens echoed faintly in the distance—someone had called it in.
The nurse stepped forward, carefully placing the baby back into the mother’s arms. “She belongs with you. She always did.”
May you like
The guards moved toward the doctor this time.
And for the first time, he didn’t resist.
