Dr. Shah answered gently.
“It means the pregnancy test did not prove that anyone hurt you.”
Daniel took Sophie’s hand.
She held on tightly.
I stared at the glowing image of the tumor and understood the terrible bargain we had been given.
The test that nearly destroyed our family might also have saved my daughter’s life.
CHAPTER FIVE
The Damage Done Before the Diagnosis
Sophie was admitted to the pediatric oncology floor shortly after midnight.
By morning, the story had escaped the hospital.
Daniel’s phone began ringing before sunrise. He ignored the first two calls, then stepped into the hallway to answer the third. When he returned, his face was empty.
“What happened?” I asked.
He looked at Sophie before lowering his voice.
“Brookfield placed me on administrative leave.”
Daniel taught fifth-grade science. He had worked at the same elementary school for eleven years without a single complaint.
“Why would the school even know?”
Daniel looked toward Eric, who was sleeping in a chair near the window.
Someone had contacted the superintendent while we were waiting for the ultrasound. The caller reported that Daniel was being questioned after a ten-year-old girl in his home tested positive for pregnancy.
I woke Eric.
“Did you call Daniel’s school?”
He sat up slowly.
“I believed a child might be in danger.”
“You knew the ultrasound found no pregnancy.”
“I made the call before the ultrasound.”
“Then call them again.”
Eric rubbed both hands over his face.
“The doctors still haven’t explained the hormone.”
“They found a tumor in her brain!”
“That doesn’t automatically erase every concern.”
Daniel stepped between us.
“Stop.”
His voice was quiet, but Sophie opened her eyes.
“Why are you fighting?”
“No reason, bug,” Daniel said.
Sophie looked at him.
“Why aren’t you at school?”
None of us answered quickly enough.
Her gaze moved from Daniel to Eric.
“You told people he hurt me.”
Eric stood.
“I was trying to protect you.”
“I told you he didn’t.”
“Sophie, sometimes children—”
“I am not lying!”
The heart monitor beside her bed began beeping faster. A nurse entered and asked everyone except me to leave.
Sophie turned her face toward the wall.
“They keep saying they believe me, but they don’t.”
I sat beside her.
“The doctors believe you.”
“What about you?”
The question cut deeper than anything Eric had said.
“I believe you.”
“Did you believe me yesterday?”
I remembered looking away from Daniel through the glass.
“I was frightened,” I admitted. “And for one moment, I let that fear become doubt. I am so sorry.”
Dr. Shah arrived with a neurosurgeon later that morning. Additional blood tests showed that Sophie’s hCG remained elevated. Another tumor marker was also abnormal.
They needed a small tissue sample to identify the exact tumor and choose the safest treatment.
“Will you cut my head open?” Sophie asked.
The neurosurgeon explained that the procedure would be performed through a small opening using image guidance. He spoke carefully, without making promises he could not keep.
Sophie listened, clutching her rabbit.
