Dr. Ellis was my endocrinologist.
I had gone there because I had been dizzy, exhausted, and unwell for weeks. I had told nobody except Noah. We were still waiting for test results.
Mom tilted her head, silently daring me to challenge her in front of everyone.
If I denied it, I would seem cru:el. If I remained silent, the lie would keep growing.
Then my phone buzzed.
A message from an unfamiliar number appeared.
Claire, this is Megan from Dr. Ellis’s office. Your mother called again claiming to be your emergency contact. She asked whether the “medication switch” worked. Please call us immediately.
I raised my eyes toward my mother.
She was still smiling.
Then Noah’s phone rang.
He answered, listened for five seconds, and all the color drained from his face.
“Claire,” he whispered, “why is your job offer marked withdrawn?”
I took Noah’s phone from his hand.
The email was genuine.
Seattle Design Group had received a message from my personal account two days earlier withdrawing because of “unexpected family expansion.”
I had never sent it.
My mother moved closer. “Careers come back. Babies don’t wait forever.”
My sister whispered, “Mom, what did you do?”
Mom ignored her. “Claire was going to leave. She was going to take my son-in-law, my future grandchildren, and my opportunity to become a grandmother away from me.”
Noah stood. “Future grandchildren are not your property.”
Mom’s smile faltered. “She thinks she knows better. She needs guidance.”
I laughed once, though nothing about this was funny.
“Guidance?” I raised Megan’s message. “You called my doctor pretending you had permission. You contacted my employer. What else have you done?”
The answer came from my sister.
She reached inside her diaper bag and removed a folded pharmacy receipt.
“I found this in Mom’s purse last week,” she said. “I assumed it belonged to you.”
I unfolded it.
My name appeared on the refill request.
But the medication listed was not what Dr. Ellis had prescribed.
Noah read it over my shoulder and became completely still. “Claire, this might explain why you’ve been feeling sick.”
Mom snapped, “I was helping her body do what it was supposed to do.”
Every expression around the table changed.
My sister stepped between Mom and me. “You interfered with her health because you wanted a grandchild?”
Mom’s voice grew louder. “I wanted a family. Is that a crime?”
Then Megan called.
I put her on speaker.
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