I opened my handbag and pulled out the paper napkin I had taken from the local diner.

It was the napkin Rose had used to wipe her mouth before she vanished from the booth.

It still carried a faint trace of her pink lipstick and her saliva.

I had Rose’s DNA.

I had Richard’s DNA from the water glass.

And now, I had Claire’s.

I went into my small home office and shut the door.

I turned on my laptop and searched for local private DNA laboratories.

I found one located in a medical plaza just three miles away, near the highway.

Their website promised confidential, express testing with a twenty-four-hour turnaround for an extra fee.

I printed out the required intake forms.

I filled them out using a fake name for myself, but I used my private email address for the results.

I put the three sealed plastic baggies into a thick manila envelope.

I labeled them clearly: *Father*, *Mother*, *Child*.

Outside, the sky had turned a dull, bruised shade of gray.

A light rain began to patter against the windowpane.