Chapter 6 - THE BABY CAME EARLY
Sarah's words came before the note had even settled on the table.
“What?”
She pointed to the date.
“Tomorrow.”
I looked at the calendar.
The transfer was scheduled for the next morning.
Gero had intended to force Beate's signature before the police could intervene.
“But he's already arrested.”
“Yes.”
“So why does the date still matter?”
Sarah's expression changed.
“Because Rüdiger isn't waiting for Gero.”
She immediately contacted the investigators.
I stayed with Beate.
She was quiet.
Too quiet.
Then she looked at me.
“Papa.”
“Yes?”
“I'm tired.”
“I know.”
She closed her eyes.
A few minutes later, she suddenly gripped my hand.
“Something's happening.”
Patrizia came into the room.
Her face changed immediately.
“Beate?”
She checked the monitor.
“We're going to move you.”
My heart stopped.
“Is the baby okay?”
“Yes.”
“But?”
“She may be going into labor.”
Everything after that happened quickly.
Nurses.
Medical staff.
Orders.
The room filled with movement.
Beate squeezed my hand.
“I’m scared.”
“I know.”
“I don't want him to win.”
“He won't.”
“You promise?”
I looked at her.
“I promise you one thing.”
“What?”
“No one decides your future for you again.”
She nodded.
Then they took her toward the delivery area.
I waited outside.
For the first time in decades, I understood how helpless a parent could feel.
Training meant nothing there.
Rank meant nothing.
Experience meant nothing.
You simply waited.
Hours later, a nurse walked toward me.
“Mr. Brand?”
I stood.
“The baby is here.”
My chest tightened.
“Is Beate okay?”
“Yes.”
“And the baby?”
“A little early, but stable.”
I closed my eyes.
Thank God.
When I entered the room, Beate was exhausted.
Her hair was damp.
Her face was pale.
But she was smiling.
A tiny baby lay against her chest.
A girl.
“She came early,” Beate whispered.
I moved closer.
“She did.”
Beate looked at me.
“Her name is Anna.”
I touched the baby's tiny hand.
“Hello, Anna.”
She curled her fingers around mine.
I cried.
Not because I was sad.
Because my daughter had survived.
Because this tiny child had entered the world after a night that should never have happened.
Then Sarah entered quietly.
“Everything okay?”
I nodded.
She smiled.
“Good.”
Beate looked at her.
“What about Rüdiger?”
Sarah's expression became serious.
“He's been arrested.”
Beate exhaled.
“And Gero?”
“Still in custody.”
She hesitated.
“There is something else.”
“What?”
“Rüdiger's bank accounts were frozen this morning.”
“Why?”
“Because Clara gave us enough financial evidence to connect him to the property scheme.”
Beate looked down at Anna.
“So it's over?”
“The immediate danger is.”
I noticed the distinction.
“The immediate danger.”
Sarah nodded.
“The court process will take time.”
Beate looked tired.
“I don't care how long it takes.”
She stared at her daughter.
“I just want her safe.”
“She will be.”
Sarah left.
I remained beside the bed.
Beate looked at me.
“Papa.”
“Yes?”
“I thought you'd be angry that I stayed with him.”
I shook my head.
“I am angry.”
She looked down.
“At him.”
She looked back up.
“Not you.”
She started crying.
I held her.
For eighteen months, she had carried shame that never belonged to her.
Now I wanted to lift every ounce of it.
“You never needed to be stronger for me,” I told her.
“I thought I did.”
“You're my daughter.”
I kissed her forehead.
“You only needed to survive.”
Anna made a tiny sound.
Beate smiled.
Then the door opened.
A nurse entered carrying a small envelope.
“This was found among the belongings sent from your house.”
Beate frowned.
“Mine?”
“Yes.”
She opened it.
Inside was a photograph.
Beate pregnant.
Standing outside Falkenhof.
Taken months before the assault.
On the back was one sentence.
She was never supposed to inherit the house.
I looked at Sarah.
She read it.
May you like
Then she whispered:
“There's another owner.”
