The Wrong Surrogate

Chapter Two: The Consent Form

POV: Ivy Carter

“I'm asking you one more time. What exactly did you do to me?”

Neither the doctor nor the administrator answered immediately.

I looked from one woman to the other, growing more frustrated by the second. They were sitting in front of me with my medical file between them and exchanging looks as though I wasn't even in the room.

Well, I was in the room and I wasn't leaving until someone gave me a proper explanation.

“Miss Carter, we understand that you're upset” the administrator began, folding her hands on the desk “but we need to investigate the circumstances surrounding your procedure before we can give you a definite answer”

“Then investigate it while I'm sitting here. Call whoever performed the procedure. Check your cameras. Look through every document you have with my name on it. I don't care what you have to do but don't expect me to walk out of here as if nothing happened”

The administrator sighed.

“I assure you that we're taking this matter seriously”

“Really? because so far all you've done is tell me I'm pregnant with a baby I never agreed to carry”

The doctor shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

“Miss Carter, we need to confirm which procedure was performed during your previous appointment. Your records indicate that you signed a consent form authorizing an embryo transfer”

I stared at her.

“Then show me the form”

She opened the file again, flipping through several pages before stopping at one near the back.

“This is the document attached to your record”

I leaned forward.

There was my name, my date of birth and a signature at the bottom of the page.

The signature looked like mine but something about it was wrong. The letters were too carefully formed, especially the last part of my surname.

I signed documents almost every week at work. I knew what my signature looked like.

And that wasn't it.

“This isn't my signature”

The administrator took the document from the doctor and examined it.

“Are you certain?”

I gave her a look.

“Do I look uncertain to you?”

“Please don't misunderstand me. We have to verify every detail before reaching a conclusion”

“Fine verify it but I'm telling you now that I never signed a document consenting to an embryo transfer”

The administrator placed the form back on the desk.

“We'll need to retrieve the original document from our records department”

“Why isn't the original already here?”

“Some of our records are stored electronically”

“Then open the electronic record”

She hesitated.

That was the second time she'd hesitated when I asked a straightforward question and I was beginning to lose the little bit of patience I had..

“Is there a problem with your system or is there something you're hoping I won't see?”

“Miss Carter that's a serious accusation”

“So is performing a medical procedure on someone without their consent”

The room fell silent.

I looked down at the form again, trying to understand how my name had ended up on it. If someone had forged my signature they had done it for a reason and if the clinic knew what had happened, their sudden concern about verifying everything made me even more suspicious.

I reached for the document.

“Can I have a copy?”

The administrator quickly placed her hand over it.

“We can't release that document until the review is complete”

I slowly withdrew my hand.

“You can't release a document bearing my name and my supposed signature?”

“Not until we've established that the record is accurate”

I laughed in disbelief.

“That's convenient”

I picked up my bag and stood.

“I'm going to need the name of the person who performed my last treatment, the name of the doctor who authorized it and copies of every form I signed that day”

“We'll provide the information once the investigation is complete”

“No. You'll provide it because it's my medical information and I have a right to know what was done to me”

The administrator's expression tightened but she didn't dare argue.

I pulled out my phone and took a photograph of the consent form before she could close the file.

“Miss Carter you cannot photograph confidential medical documents”

“It's my name on that document”

I slipped my phone into my bag.

“Unless you've suddenly discovered that I'm someone else, I don't see the problem”

The doctor stood.

“I think it would be best if you went home and allowed us to contact you once we've reviewed the records”

I stared at her for a long moment.

“Contact me today. Not next week, not when you've found a convenient explanation. Today”

Then I walked out.

Elena was waiting near the reception desk when I came out from the office.

I had called her earlier and explained everything.

She stood as soon as she saw me.

“Well?”

I shook my head.

“They're hiding something”

Her face fell.

“What do you mean?”

“They showed me a consent form with my name on it but the signature isn't mine and then to top it all off, when I asked for a copy, they refused to give it to me”

“What?”

“I took a picture though”

I unlocked my phone and showed her the picture

She looked at it carefully.

“That doesn’t even look like your handwriting girl"

“Exactly”

She looked up at me.

“Are you going to report them?”

“Yes of course but first, I want to know who arranged the procedure and why”

We left the clinic and headed toward the car. I had barely settled into my seat when Elena turned to me.

“Did they tell you anything about the other patient?”

“They said my records were connected to a fertility case belonging to another woman. Apparently, the embryo was supposed to be transferred to her”

“Do they know who she is?”

“They refused to tell me. They kept hiding behind patient confidentiality”

Elena shook her head.

“So someone else's embryo was transferred into you, your signature was apparently forged and the clinic expects you to wait patiently while they investigate?”

“When you put it like that, it sounds even worse”

“Because it is worse, Ivy”

I leaned against the seat and closed my eyes.

She was right.

This wasn't a simple mix up involving two files. Someone had needed me to undergo that procedure without asking questions.

But who?

My phone buzzed.

It was an email notification.

Subject: Fertility Procedure Review

I opened it immediately.

The email was from the clinic administrator. Attached were two documents,a copy of my recent treatment record and a brief statement confirming that the clinic was investigating a discrepancy involving my procedure.

I opened the treatment record first.

Most of it looked familiar. My name, my appointment date and the details of the vaginal treatment I'd originally requested were all there.

But near the bottom was a separate entry.

Embryo transfer completed. Patient: Ivy Carter.

My breath caught.

I opened the second attachment.

It was a summary of the fertility case linked to my medical record. The patient's name had been redacted but the document contained the details of a private surrogacy agreement.

The intended surrogate had been scheduled to receive an embryo created using the genetic material of a male client.

I read the paragraph twice.

Then I noticed a line near the bottom of the page.

Client: Julian Mercer.

Julian Mercer.

The man whose child I was apparently carrying.

Before I could process the discovery another email popped up.

This one contained a single sentence.

Mr. Mercer's legal representative has requested an urgent meeting with you regarding the pregnancy.

I looked at Elena.

“What's wrong?” she asked.

I turned the phone toward her.

She read the message, then slowly looked back at me.

“Ivy, who exactly is this Julian Mercer?”

I swallowed.

“I have no idea”

But someone with that name had arranged for another woman to carry his child and somehow I had ended up in her place.

And now his legal team wanted to meet me.

I actually didn't know what frightened me more, the fact that a stranger's baby was growing inside me or the possibility that someone had planned it that way.

Either way, I was going to find out the truth.

Even if I had to drag it out of every person involved.