Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 86710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 434(@200wpm)___ 347(@250wpm)___ 289(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 434(@200wpm)___ 347(@250wpm)___ 289(@300wpm)
“Sorry about that,” Amelia says, shifting her attention to me. “It must be crazy at the clinic?”
“It is, especially this morning but hopefully in a couple of days, things will get back to normal.” I’m careful not to mention Jace’s name. I’m afraid my feelings will show in the way I say his name. Amelia misses nothing.
“So, I have some exciting news. We’ve had quite an influx of people contacting the magazine and today has been all about sifting through to see if there are any legit accusations against fertility hospitals and clinics.”
Dismay settles in me. Jace had warned me about this but it had sounded unreal, farfetched even. What I don’t get is this: If people have a real concern and complaint, why not use the proper channels? Even as these thoughts go through my mind, it dawns on me how much I’ve changed.
Prior to working at The Anderson Clinic, I only saw issues from one point of view: the magazine’s. Now that I’m on the other side, it distresses me that one person’s not-quite-true story can have a huge impact on a business that is making a big difference in people’s lives.
“We have a few leads but there’s one couple in particular that I wanted to talk about with you. At first glance, their story seems legitimate. We’ll of course dig deeper before committing but I wanted to give you a heads up that you’ll be doing that interview if we do go ahead with the story.”
Pleasure courses through me. This is what I’ve been working so hard for. Hearing Amelia say with confidence that she’s entrusting me with a human interest story my blood pumps faster and I find myself inching to the edge of the seat.
“You might be wondering why I picked you for such an important interview,” Amelia continues.
I haven’t wondered that but I keep my mouth shut. I want to believe that she picked me because I’ve proven my professionalism. Who am I kidding? I haven’t provided Amelia with substantial investigative stories.
“You are conversant with The Anderson Clinic and you know the processes. You’ll know what doesn’t add up and question them further,” Amelia says.
My blood goes cold. “The Anderson Clinic?”
“Yes, sorry, I’m going ahead of myself,” Amelia says. “So this couple has a damning story to tell about The Anderson Clinic. Apparently, they’d had a financial arrangement with this woman to surrogate for them. Everything went ahead as planned and the woman got pregnant. Except a mistake happened and the clinic used the wrong sperm.”
My heart races to near explosion. I have no doubt that the couple in question is the same couple that Ivy was supposed to surrogate for. It cannot possibly be a coincidence.
“It’s going to be a huge story and I want you to write it. You know The Anderson Clinic and you’ll be able to see inconsistencies in the story.”
I’m breathing so fast, as if I’ve come from racing, and trying to hide it from Amelia. My mind is a whirlwind of confusion. I clench and unclench my hands. Do I tell Amelia that I know the whole story? Oh, God. I’m going to throw up all over my boss’s desk.
“Are you okay?” Amelia asks. “You look pale.”
“I’m good, thanks. Just shocked, that’s all.” What a disaster. “So, this couple, why are they coming forward now?”
Amelia shakes her head. “We haven’t put that question to them. We don’t want to scare them off and in any case, who cares? If their story checks out, I for one don’t care for their reasons. They could have gone to any other publication. They came to us. You don’t kick a gift horse in the mouth.”
I nod as if I understand. What impact will this have on Jace and the clinic? This story will get out, whether we’re the ones who publish it or not. Whether I’m the one who writes it or not.
“We’ll need some time to check their story out. Can you help?” Amelia asks.
I stare at her blankly.
“You must have contacts at the clinic, someone who can discreetly tell you whether these people were ever patients at the clinic.”
My heart beating rapidly, I think fast. “We need the name of the woman who was the surrogate. She’s the one who was a patient at the clinic. The records would be under her name.” I hold my breath and wait for Amelia’s response.
She’s thoughtful for a moment. “You’re right. I’ll see whether we can get them to give us a name. I’ll keep you posted.”
Relief floods through me. I feel as if I’ve dodged a live bullet and I can’t wait to leave Amelia’s office. I’m so frightened that I can barely breath. The walls feel as if they’re closing in and Amelia’s office seems smaller than usual.
“Okay, that’s that,” she says and I shoot to my feet. She stands up as well. “This is big, Olivia and if we play our cards right, we’ll stand out in history for breaking the biggest story of the year.”