Then she asked whether anyone close to me had access to copies of my identification.
I thought about the family gathering at the farmhouse the previous weekend.
Sabrina had been there.
She had spent nearly an hour beside my handbag while I helped Elaine set the dinner table.
My driver’s license had been inside that bag.
I also remembered Dylan asking me for a photograph of the front and back of the license a few days earlier.
He claimed it was needed for paperwork related to adding our babies to his employer’s insurance coverage.
I sent him the photographs without questioning him.
That was the first moment I became truly afraid.
Nina advised me not to alert anyone who might be involved before investigators could establish what was happening.
I agreed, although I had no idea how much worse things would become.
The following week, I went into premature labor.
The hospital admitted me late in the evening.
By midnight, the doctors were preparing for an emergency delivery.
I called Dylan repeatedly.
He answered once, over the sound of applause and music.
“Anna, I’m in the middle of something important.”
“The babies are coming.”
There was a pause.
Then I heard Sabrina’s voice in the background asking whether he was ready for the next photograph.
“I’ll get there as soon as I can,” he said.
He arrived after the surgery was over.
I remember the operating room lights, the anesthesiologist’s calm voice, and the extraordinary sound of Rose crying for the first time.
Then I remember asking about Eli.
Nobody answered immediately.
A nurse eventually assured me that he was receiving extra attention and that the team was helping him breathe more comfortably.
By morning, both babies were stable, although Eli still needed careful monitoring.
I had never been so grateful for anything.
Then Dylan entered my hospital room with a manila envelope.
He did not bring flowers.
He did not bring a stuffed animal for the twins.
He brought divorce papers.
“I’m moving forward with my life,” he announced.
“Sabrina and I have been discussing what comes next.”
My heart seemed to stop.
“Discussing what?”
“Our future.”
I looked at the bassinets.
“You mean you’ve been planning this while I was pregnant?”
He avoided my eyes.
“It’s better to be honest now.”
He said Sabrina wanted a family and that his parents could help raise Eli at the farmhouse.
Then he explained that I could keep Rose because he believed managing two newborns would be too difficult for me.
He spoke as though family-court decisions could be settled by pointing at a baby and announcing ownership.
“You have no property, Anna,” he continued.
“You aren’t working.
You can’t even afford a suitable place without my help.”
I looked at the divorce agreement.
There were provisions regarding temporary financial support and proposed custody arrangements.
Dylan had already marked the places where he expected me to sign.
I pushed the papers away.
“I won’t separate my children.”
His expression turned hard.
“Then we’ll let the lawyers explain what happens to people who can’t support themselves.”
He had barely finished speaking when someone knocked.
Three firm knocks.
A nurse opened the door, followed by Detective Rosa Calder and two uniformed officers.
Detective Calder introduced herself and asked whether I was medically able
