Chapter 1 The Wrong Name

Lina Moore had learned to count her life in exits.

The back door she wasn't allowed to use, because it was "for family only."

The bedroom door she closed too carefully every night, so it wouldn't creak and earn her a sharp rebuke.

The future that always seemed close enough to touch, yet far enough to vanish whenever she reached for it.

Most of her life had been about leaving quietly-leaving rooms, leaving conversations, leaving pieces of herself behind so she wouldn't be noticed. Survival, she'd learned, wasn't about being strong. It was about being invisible.

This morning, though, felt different.

Hope was a dangerous thing in her aunt's house. It had a way of being punished. Still, Lina couldn't help it.

The scholarship letter rested folded neatly inside her bag, its edges worn from how often she'd taken it out just to be sure it was still there. Still real. Still hers. A full ride. Tuition. Housing. A chance to leave this house without begging or owing anyone anything.

One medical screening.

That was all that stood between her and freedom.

As she stood in front of the cracked mirror in the narrow hallway, smoothing down the hem of her skirt with trembling fingers, something warm fluttered in her chest.

"Don't mess this up," her aunt called from the kitchen without looking at her. "People like you don't get second chances."

"I won't," Lina said softly, her voice instinctively small.

Her aunt snorted. "See that you don't."

Lina slipped her bag over her shoulder and stepped outside before anything else could be said. The door shut behind her with a hollow thud that echoed longer than it should have.

The bus ride to the hospital felt longer than it was. Lina sat by the window, her forehead resting lightly against the glass as the city blurred past. Coffee shops filled with laughing strangers. Office buildings where people walked with purpose. Couples holding hands. Students with backpacks slung carelessly over their shoulders.

People who looked like they belonged somewhere.

Soon, she told herself. Soon, that will be me.

The hospital loomed large and impersonal, all steel and glass and sharp edges. It smelled like antiseptic and something faintly floral, an attempt at comfort that didn't quite succeed. Lina joined the line at the reception desk, heart pounding as if she were about to take an exam she hadn't studied for.

"Name?" the receptionist asked, fingers already moving over the keyboard.

"Lina Moore."

The woman typed. Paused. Frowned briefly.

Lina's stomach tightened.

Then the receptionist nodded. "Take a seat. They'll call you."

Relief rushed through Lina so fast it made her dizzy. She moved to one of the plastic chairs and sat, hugging her bag to her chest like a shield.

Around her, life continued. Phones buzzed. A man argued quietly with his wife. Somewhere down the hall, a baby cried, the sound sharp and piercing. Lina focused on her breathing.

This was routine.

This was safe.

"Ms. Moore?"

Lina stood instantly, almost knocking her chair over.

A nurse in blue scrubs waved her over, already turning away. "Follow me."

They walked quickly through long white corridors that all looked the same. Lina struggled to keep up, her shoes squeaking softly against the floor.

"Um-this is just for the screening, right?" Lina asked, her voice hesitant.

The nurse glanced at the clipboard in her hand. "Yes. Everything's been cleared already."

Cleared.

The word landed strangely in Lina's chest, but she nodded. She had learned that questioning adults-especially ones in authority-usually led to trouble. Trouble she couldn't afford.

The nurse led her into a small, cold room. A thin gown lay folded on the bed

"Change," the nurse said. "We'll be back."

Lina obeyed, folding her clothes carefully and placing them on the chair. The gown was too thin, too open. She sat on the edge of the bed, feet dangling, heart beating too fast.

The exam felt... excessive.

Blood was drawn. Tubes filled one after another. Forms were handed to her, taken away, replaced with more forms. Questions came quickly, without context.

"Have you ever been pregnant?"

"No," Lina answered, startled.

"Do you understand the agreement?"

"Agreement?" Lina echoed.

The nurse smiled distractedly, already writing something down. "Just answer yes or no."

"I don't understand-"

"Ms. Moore," the nurse said gently but firmly, "we're behind schedule."

That familiar fear rose in Lina's chest-the fear of being difficult. Of being a problem. Of losing something precious because she asked one question too many.

So she nodded.

At one point, a doctor entered, scrolling through a tablet without looking up.

"Everything looks fine," she said briskly. "We just need your signature."

She turned the tablet around.

The screen was filled with dense text. Medical terms. Legal language. Words Lina didn't recognize. Her chest tightened.

"What exactly is this?" Lina asked.

"Standard consent," the doctor replied. "It confirms you understand the process."

"The process of...?" Lina pressed, her voice barely above a whisper.

The doctor sighed, impatience flickering across her face. "Ms. Moore, if there were an issue, we wouldn't be proceeding. Sign, please."

Lina thought of her aunt's voice.

The scholarship letter.

The door she'd been waiting her whole life to open.

Her finger hovered over the screen.

Then she signed.

The doctor smiled briefly. "All done."

Just like that, it was over.

Lina left the hospital an hour later feeling strangely hollow, as if something important had happened without her being fully present for it. She glanced at the discharge papers only long enough to check the date. She didn't notice the name printed neatly at the top.

Maris Moore.

She went home believing she had passed a medical exam.

She ate dinner quietly, endured her aunt's scrutiny, and went to bed with cautious hope blooming in her chest.

She went to sleep believing her future was secure.

She didn't know that across the hospital, another woman-wealthy, confident, and fully aware of why she was there-was being waved out early.

"Routine screening complete," the nurse told Maris Moore with a polite smile. "You're free to go."

Maris raised an eyebrow. "Already?"

"Yes, ma'am."

She left without a second thought.

That night, in a glass tower overlooking the city, a billionaire signed a contract with a steady hand, believing his long-planned future was finally in motion.

And in a small bedroom miles away, Lina Moore slept peacefully, unaware that she had just agreed to something that would change her life forever.