Page 80

“I-I had sexual relations with two men prior to me being pregnant. I have no clue which one between the two is Lina’s father but a paternity test could prove which one’s the father right?”

Dr. Santiago doesn’t judge me as she says simply, “Yes.”

I swallow past the lump in my throat.

“But…”, I hesitate, “This might sound strange. Could I use…hair samples?”

Dr. Santiago tilts her head, “In human medicine, hair samples are not viable for DNA testing. But werewolf DNA is uniquely bonded to every fiber– fur, hair, skin. We can extract what the DNA we need from the hair follicles so no need to worry Miss Winter. Hair samples are viable for testing in our realm.”

Relief whooshes through my chest, “Thank you so much.”

As soon as I step out of the healer’s office, my mind works fast. I take my cell phone from my bag, dialing Ethan’s number.

“Lila? What…”

“I need Alaric’s hair sample or anything that has his DNA, can you find it for me in his car? I need Lina too so please come with her.”

“Lila, I’m in the parking lot, Lina fell asleep and you are starting to scare me. What is this about?”

“I need to save Lina.”

“Lila…”

“I need to submit Alaric’s hair sample and Lina’s hair sample so I can get a paternity test that proves Alaric is my daughter’s father. Can you get me Alaric’s hair brush or something? He has to have it in his car right?”

“Yes. I’m on my way up.”

“Thank you,” I almost sob into the cellphone.

We rush to the lab.

I hand over the samples in a small polythene bag, my hands trying their best not to shake.

As the nurse takes them, I step closer, my voice trembling, “Is there any way to expedite this? I’ll pay twenty times the fee…whatever…whatever it takes. Please, my daughter doesn’t have much time left.”

“We understand ma’am”, the nurse’s eyes soften, “And yes, we can put a priority on your case.”

“Will expediting the process mess up the results?”

The nurse smiles reassuringly, “We have advanced methods for running the tests. Whether the results take weeks or even hours, we’ll always make sure they are accurate so no need to worry, ma’am.”

I nod gratefully and step away. Ethan’s still quiet beside me as we walk to the exit.

The only thing making me breathe easy is the fact that I can hear Lina’s snoring from his arms. She’s asleep, she’s breathing and she’ll be okay.

We round the corner that leads to the exit but the universe isn’t done with me yet because I collide into someone. Hard.

The woman stumbles back.

Ethan holds me from falling onto my ass and Lina stirs in his arms.

"Oh—I’m so sorry, I didn’t see—"

She freezes. I freeze.

I’d know that voice from anywhere.

And I'd recognize that face from a street away.