The Signature Before Birth
Chapter 02 - The Signature Before Birth
Paramedics examined Claire in the estate library.
She was shaken but physically unharmed. The soup had caused no burn, and the baby’s heartbeat remained steady.
Claire asked for Julian to stay outside.
The document recovered from the dining table contained twenty-eight pages.
Only the first two had been shown to her.
The visible pages authorized routine coordination between her obstetrician and the Ashford family physician.
The remaining pages created an emergency guardianship pathway.
If Claire were diagnosed with prenatal anxiety, impaired judgment, or “persistent distrust of family support,” Julian could approve treatment without her consent.
He could also access the unborn child’s genetic records and serve as temporary trustee of the Bennett Maternal Health Fund.
Richard read the clause twice.
Claire’s late mother, Dr. Amelia Bennett, had created the fund after developing a low-cost prenatal monitoring system. It controlled hospitals, patents, and community clinics worth nearly four billion dollars.
Amelia’s will protected Claire during pregnancy.
At the child’s birth, fifty-one percent of the voting shares would transfer into an independent maternal-and-worker trust.
No spouse could own them.
There was one exception.
If Claire were declared medically incapable before delivery, her legal guardian could delay the transfer for ten years.
Julian’s name appeared in the prepared guardianship petition.
Dr. Paul Mercer had already signed the supporting evaluation.
Claire had met Mercer only twice at charity dinners.
His report claimed she suffered paranoid jealousy, emotional instability, and obsessive suspicion concerning Celeste.
The affair itself had been converted into evidence that Claire imagined an affair.
Ortiz preserved the report.
Richard looked toward the closed library doors.
“How long have they been building this?”
May you like
Claire rested a hand on her stomach.
“Long enough to make the truth sound like a symptom.”
