r. He handled the nurses and the paperwork with a determined efficiency that I loved. He was a good man, my David. A

s complete. "It's a corner room. Much more peaceful. I tol

d. "I just feel so... protective. I do

ooked at our daughter, Emily, sleeping in the

ssed the babies back and forth, exclaiming how wonderful it was that the cousins were born on the same day. The swap must have

knock came at the door. My body ten

as L

ace. She looked tired, her hospital gown rumpled, but her eyes we

erything okay?" she asked, her v

way. "Sarah's just really tired

yes fixing on the bassinet next to me. I could see the flicker of calculation, the gears turnin

kly. "I just wanted to see my beautiful ne

forward, but D

d, his tone polite but firm. "

k to the precious baby sleeping peacefully. I could feel her frustration radiating across

smile back onto her face. "You two g

iet hall. I watched her go, my heart pounding with a m

ed door. "Is everything alright between you and

t tell him the truth. Not yet. He would think I was crazy, suffering from

s of hell. Alex's constant, violent tantrums. The doctors' appointments, the specialists, the therapists. The judgmental stares from other parents at the park. T

eded because of the child she had forced upon me. She had played the part of the concerned best friend perfectly, all while

ft me to bleed out on our living room floor, and Lisa, I was sure, would have att

t this

ar, the isolation. She would face the violence and the heartbreak. She would pay for what she did