Page 3 of Secret Baby's Second Shot

“Hi again, Ava,” I said, keeping my voice as light as possible. “How’s the knee feeling now?”

“It’s okay,” she said, her small fingers fidgeting with the edge of her dress. “It doesn’t hurt much anymore.”

“That’s good,” I said, stepping closer. “But you know what? I want to make sure there’s nothing else we missed, just to be extra careful. Would that be okay?”

Ava nodded, her wide eyes trusting.

I glanced at Summer. She gave me a hesitant nod, but her expression was guarded, like she was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

“All right,” I said, pulling over a stool and sitting down. “Ava, I’m going to ask you a few questions, okay? It’s like a little game where you tell me if anything feels funny.”

“Okay,” she said softly.

I asked her about pain in her other joints, whether she ever felt tired during playtime, and if her knee had hurt before today. Each question was met with a shake of her head or a quiet “No.”

Summer sat silently, her eyes darting between Ava and me. When I asked about bruises, though, Ava tilted her head, thinking.

“Sometimes,” she said.

I leaned in slightly. “Sometimes? Can you tell me more about that?”

“Um… when I bump into things, I get big bruises,” she said, holding her hands out wide to demonstrate.

My stomach tightened. “Does it happen a lot?”

“Not a lot,” she said, her voice small.

Summer’s hand went to Ava’s shoulder. “She’s just clumsy,” she said quickly, her tone defensive.

“Maybe,” I said gently, my professional instincts kicking in. “But I’d like to run some blood tests, just to make sure everything’s okay.”

Summer’s brows knit together. “Blood tests? Enzo, her knee is the issue here. Why would you need to do more?”

I held her gaze, keeping my tone steady. “It’s routine. Given the depth of the cut and the bruising she mentioned, I want to be thorough. It’s probably nothing, but I’d rather be safe.”

She hesitated, then sighed. “Fine.”

I turned back to Ava, smiling again. “You’re going to be the bravest patient ever, Ava. It’ll just be a little poke, and then you can have a cool Band-Aid, okay?”

Ava didn’t look thrilled, but she nodded.

The blood testdidn’t take long. Ava was remarkably calm for her age, holding Summer’s hand tightly while the nurse worked. Once it was done, I stepped out to expedite the results.

By the time I returned, Summer was pacing the small room, her arms crossed. Ava was lying back on the table, playing with a stuffed animal one of the nurses had given her.

“Enzo,” Summer said the moment I walked in, her voice sharp. “What’s going on? You’re acting like this is more serious than a scraped knee.”

I closed the door behind me, taking a deep breath. “Summer, I’m trying to be thorough. I’ve seen too many cases where something minor uncovered a bigger issue. Let’s wait for the test results, and then I’ll explain everything.”

She stared at me, her jaw tight, but she didn’t argue.

About thirty minutes later,the lab results came in. I skimmed through the report, my stomach sinking as the numbers confirmed my suspicions.

Back in the room, I pulled up a chair, my voice calm but serious. “Summer, Ava, I need to talk to you about what I found.”

Summer froze, her hand going instinctively to Ava’s. “What is it?”

I looked at Ava first. “Ava, you’re doing great. You’re such a strong little girl. But there’s something I noticed in your blood test, and I think it’s making your bruises worse and slowing down how your knee is healing.”

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