Chapter 10
Claire told us something I had missed.
The blue ribbon was not the first marker.
Three days before delivery, someone placed a small blue blanket inside Sofia’s hospital bag.
Bianca’s initials were stitched in one corner.
Sofia thought it was a gift.
Julian said nothing.
Now he admitted he knew what it meant.
My jaw tightened.
“They were planning which baby before birth.”
“Yes.”
“How?”
Victor had already decided.
If one boy was born, Bianca would receive him.
If more than one boy, the second-born.
If all girls, they would “reconsider.”
I stared at Julian.
“You discussed sex order before your children existed.”
He lowered his eyes.
“Yes.”
Sofia laughed weakly.
“That’s why your father kept asking the ultrasound tech.”
Julian flinched.
She continued.
“I thought he was excited.”
No.
He was inventorying.
I hated the word.
Accurate.
Then Claire revealed something worse.
Victor had repeatedly asked which bassinet would be closest to the exit after delivery.
He claimed Bianca was anxious and wanted easy visiting access.
Nurse Claire thought it was strange.
Not enough to accuse.
Enough to remember.
Sofia looked at her.
“Why did you call my father?”
Claire answered simply.
“Because you asked me to call someone who would believe you.”
That sentence entered the room like a verdict.
Someone who would believe you.
Not husband.
Not father-in-law.
Not sister-in-law.
Lorenzo.
Me.
I felt guilt immediately.
Sofia saw.
“Don’t.”
I looked at her.
“You shouldn’t have needed a backup plan.”
“No.”
She shook her head.
“But I made one.”
Good.
Her agency.
Not my rescue story.
Important.
She had watched the pressure increase.
Trusted her instincts.
Told Claire.
Prepared.
My arrival mattered.
Her decision came first.
I looked at Julian.
He understood too.
This was not a father swooping in because his daughter was helpless.
His wife had already begun resisting.
May you like
He simply had not respected the no.
That difference would define what happened next.
