Chapter 3 - The Bloodline
We arrived at an unmarked brick building on the industrial edge of the city.
Dr. Reed parked inside a private garage, pulling down the metal door before we exited the car.
"Stay close to me," she whispered, scanning the dark shadows of the parking structure.
She led me through a heavy steel door into a pristine, high-tech laboratory.
A tall man in a lab coat looked up, his face pale with worry.
"Natalie, you said it was an emergency," the man said, rushing over to us.
"David, I need a full toxicology panel on this blood, and I need it ten minutes ago," Dr. Reed demanded.
She handed him the biohazard bags containing my samples.
David nodded, taking the bags and rushing toward a massive, humming machine in the corner.
Dr. Reed guided me to a plush leather couch in a small waiting area.
"Drink this," she said, handing me a bottle of purified water.
"I need you hydrated."
I drank greedily, the cool water soothing my dry, aching throat.
"What do you think is in that silver cup?" I asked, staring at the blank wall opposite me.
Dr. Reed sat down beside me, rubbing her temples in frustration.
"If my theory is correct, it is an experimental cocktail designed to alter cellular growth."
"Your mother-in-law, Sylvia, she is deeply involved in genetic research, isn't she?"
I nodded slowly, remembering the sterile, unsettling conversations at family dinners.
"She used to run a private biotech firm before she retired."
"She always talked about purifying the bloodline, making sure the Mitchell legacy was flawless."
Dr. Reed’s eyes darkened with horrifying realization.
"They are not just monitoring your baby, Anna."
"They are genetically modifying it in utero."
The room started to spin, the edges of my vision turning black.
"They are treating my child like a lab rat?" I gasped, clutching my stomach protectively.
"Aaron told me the injections were to prevent the genetic heart defect that runs in his family."
"He lied," Dr. Reed said flatly, her voice filled with disgust.
"He is using you as an incubator for whatever twisted superhuman experiment Sylvia has designed."
Before I could process the nightmare, David rushed out of the testing room.
His face was completely ashen, and he was holding a printout with trembling hands.
"Natalie, you need to see this," he stammered, holding out the paper.
"The blood is completely saturated with a synthetic hormone I have never seen before."
"And worse, it is acting as a catalyst for a massive dose of oxytocin."
Dr. Reed snatched the paper, her eyes scanning the results rapidly.
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"Oh my god," she breathed, looking up at me with sheer terror.
"They are trying to induce labor."
