I also knew where Claire’s old hairbrush was, still sitting in her bedroom drawer upstairs.

And Rose was standing right in front of me.

If I could get samples from all three of them, I would have the truth.

But I had to play along for now.

I had to make Richard believe he had won.

“So that’s your solution?” I asked, keeping my voice low and defeated.

“It’s not a solution, Evelyn. It’s a reality,” Richard said.

He straightened up, smoothing the front of his jacket.

“We have a good life,” he said.

“Claire has a future at an Ivy League school.”

“Do you want to take that away from her because of a twenty-year-old mistake?” he asked.

“It wasn’t a mistake, Richard,” Rose said, her voice rising. “You took my baby.”

“You signed the papers, Rose,” Richard snapped, his tone finally cracking.

“Because you gave me no choice!” she cried.

“There is always a choice,” Richard said coldly.

He walked over to the kitchen sink and washed his hands.

The water splashed against the stainless steel.

I watched the droplets fly, my mind spinning with a quiet, desperate plan.