The name she never knew
840 Words
The hospital room suddenly felt too small.
Sophia stared at the adoption document while her heartbeat pounded painfully inside her chest.
“No,” she whispered.
Her hands shook harder as she reread the names again.
William Benson.
Elizabeth Benson.
Adoptive parents.
The words blurred through rising tears.
“This isn’t real.”
Thompson stayed silent beside her.
Which made everything worse.
“You knew?” she asked slowly.
His expression tightened immediately.
“No.”
“You’re lying.”
“Sophia, I swear to you—”
“Everyone keeps lying to me!”
Her voice cracked sharply throughout the room.
Pain from her injury shot through her side instantly, but emotional pain drowned it easily.
For twenty years she believed she knew who she was.
Now even her own name felt uncertain.
Thompson moved closer carefully.
“Listen to me.”
“No.”
“Sophia—”
“Who am I?”
The question shattered the silence between them.
And Thompson had no answer.
Tears slid down Sophia’s face as she stared at the documents again.
There was another name listed beneath the adoption approval.
Infant's Name: Aurora Morrow.
Her breath caught.
“Aurora?”
Thompson frowned slightly.
“That name means something?”
She looked at him shakily.
“Saint Marrow Hospital.”
Realization darkened his expression instantly.
“No…”
The pieces connected violently in both their minds.
Saint Marrow.
The hospital.
The hidden message.
The adoption records.
Sophia’s chest tightened painfully.
“I was born there.”
Before Thompson could respond, the hospital room door suddenly opened.
Isabella entered quietly holding coffee cups.
But the moment she saw the papers in Sophia’s hands, she froze completely.
Fear crossed her face.
“You found it.”
Sophia looked up slowly.
“You knew too.”
Isabella closed her eyes briefly.
“Sophia—”
“My real name is Aurora?”
Silence answered first.
Then softly:
“Yes.”
The truth hit harder than the gunshot ever had.
Sophia turned away immediately, tears falling faster now.
“My entire life was fake.”
“No,” Isabella said quickly. “Your parents loved you more than anything.”
“They weren’t even my parents!”
“Yes, they were.”
Emotion cracked through Isabella’s voice unexpectedly.
“They chose you. Protected you. Raised you. Died trying to keep you safe.”
The room fell silent again.
Sophia looked down at the document.
“Then who gave birth to me?”
Neither Isabella nor Thompson answered immediately.
That hesitation terrified her.
Slowly, Sophia looked up.
“…Who?”
Isabella’s eyes filled with grief.
“Your mother.”
Confusion hit instantly.
“What?”
“Elizabeth Benson wasn’t your biological mother,” Isabella whispered. “But she was still your mother in every way that mattered.”
Sophia shook her head weakly.
“No, I don’t understand.”
Isabella stepped closer carefully.
“You were born inside Saint Marrow during one of Blackwood’s secret operations.”
Thompson’s expression darkened.
“What operation?”
Isabella looked sick remembering it.
“They were experimenting.”
The word chilled the room instantly.
“Experimenting on what?” Thompson demanded.
Isabella hesitated.
Then answered quietly.
“Children.”
Silence.
Pure horror settled across the room.
Luna, standing silently near the doorway with snacks in her arms, nearly dropped everything.
“…I’m sorry, WHAT?”
Isabella continued shakily.
“Blackwood believed certain bloodlines carried stronger psychological resistance. Intelligence. Memory retention. Emotional adaptability.”
Thompson stared at her coldly.
“You’re telling me they experimented on babies?”
“Yes.”
Sophia felt nauseous.
“And I was one of them.”
Isabella’s eyes filled with tears.
“Yes.”
The room spun around Sophia again.
“No…”
“Your biological mother died during childbirth,” Isabella continued softly. “Elizabeth and William rescued you before Blackwood could take you permanently.”
Tears streamed silently down Sophia’s face now.
“So they hid me.”
“Yes.”
“Then why was Samuel still watching me all these years?”
Isabella looked away.
“Because they believed you inherited something important.”
Fear crawled slowly up Sophia’s spine.
“What does that mean?”
Before Isabella could answer, Thompson suddenly went still.
His eyes locked onto the final page beneath the adoption file.
“What is it?” Sophia whispered.
Without speaking, Thompson picked up the page slowly.
His face lost all color.
“Sophia…”
She immediately knew.
Something worse was coming.
“What?”
Thompson handed her the document carefully.
Medical records.
Classified.
Stamped with Saint Marrow Hospital insignias.
At the bottom of the page, beneath patient information, one sentence stood out clearly.
Subject Anna Kings successfully bonded with Subject D-17.
Sophia frowned in confusion.
“What does that even mean?” Thompson looked like he couldn’t breathe.
Because besides Subject D-17, was another na
me.
Thompson, Greg.
The room went completely silent.
Luna blinked once.
Then twice.
“… Okay,” she whispered slowly. “Now I’m terrified.”
- Writer
