Mrs. Anderson’s lips shivered; she realized nothing she had told Peter ( Mr. Anderson ) would convince him. She fell on her knees, tears running down her face. She tried to speak, but before she could even say anything. She stammered, “ I don’t know Peter, I don’t know, she said as she started to shiver, her hands trembling, her legs shaking. She only hoped that Jake’s blood matched theirs. Then they can solve the other mysteries behind Maya’s blood.

Just then, from the doorway, they heard a sound. They both turned around quickly. The same Jake stood there, frozen and mute, his face white and pale, his eyes widened with shock.

“Jake, ” his mother said while trying to stand up and walk to him. Jake just turned and ran away straight to his room. Mrs. Anderson stood up quickly, trying to go after him.

“Jake, Jake! Wait, my son, it’s not what you think !” she cried as she ran after him. Jake entered his room and slammed his bedroom door shut really hard. Mrs. Anderson stood at his door, knocking, begging, and pleading. “Please, Jake, please open the door! Let’s talk about this !”But Jake said nothing to her. Her voice trembled as tears fell from her eyes. She knocked for minutes, but the door never opened. After some time and long silence, she gave up and walked away, with her sobs fading away as she walked into her room. Mrs. Anderson went to Mr. Anderson and asked him to talk to Jake. But Mr. Anderson ignored her. She sat there as a mother and felt nothing but pain in her heart. A few minutes after Jake’s mom had left, another knock was on the door. Jake checked who it was and opened the door slowly. .it was Agnes, Jake’s favorite maid. Agnes was the only one Jake ever trusted. Ever since he was a child, Agnes has been by Jake’s side. After opening the door for Agnes, Jake went to sit at the edge of his bed and folded his arms. Agnes approached him and asked, “What is wrong, my boy? Agnes then pulled a chair and sat close to Jake, trying to comfort him. Jake’s voice came out in the form of a whisper. “I heard them, Agnes. Dad said… Mom cheated on him. That’s why Maya’s blood is different. So it means she isn’t my sister. Agnes’s heart almost broke when she heard his words. She reached out and held his hands gently. “Jake, what if the doctor is wrong? What if the doctor made a mistake? I’ll go and speak to your parents. So we can have another test done elsewhere. ”Jake shook his head vehemently. “It’s not necessary, Agnes. The results will be the same no matter what .”

Agnes looked at him as she tried to fight the tears in her eyes. “Listen to me, my boy, listen to me, Jake. No matter what happens, don’t ever turn your heart away from Maya. When she finally wakes up, she’ll need you now than ever. You’ve always been her protector, you’ve always been by her side, you’ve always fought for her. How do you think she’ll feel if she wakes up and finds out the one person she trusted most doesn’t love her anymore?”

Jake took his hands from Agnes and said, “But she’s not my sister.”

“You can’t say that until you are sure of it, my boy knows,” Agnes said firmly. “Until then, we have to pray that she gets better and she gets strong, and we have to pray that the truth, whatever it is, comes out peacefully, bringing peace, not pain and rejection. And please my son, go and apologize to your mother. She’s breaking inside. Have you thought of how she’s feeling inside, having one child at the hospital and being accused of something she might not even have a single idea of? You have no idea how heavy a mother’s heart can be in times like this .”Jake turned away, lying back on the bed. His voice came out cold, distant. “I’ll apologize when the results prove she’s my sister.”

Agnes sighed. Deep down, she knew Jake was an arrogant boy, and if he wasn’t ready to listen to even her, then their efforts were a waste until the results were revealed. Agnes stood up to leave, turning her face and brushing a tear from her cheek. “Goodnight, Jake, " she said as she closed her door.

“Goodnight,” he whispered at her, closing his eyes as the first tear fell silently down his face. Just then, lightning struck, and rain started to shower over the Anderson mansion, which was now thrown into chaos, doubt, and confusion.

The next morning didn’t feel different; everyone woke up gloomy and sad. Jake got ready for school without his sister. When he got to school, he exited the car and headed straight to class. Everyone in the school just kept looking at him. He knew deep down that they had a lot of questions to ask him about when his sister was going to be back from the hospital. He allowed no one to ask him any questions regarding his sister, not even the teachers.

Meanwhile, back at home. Agnes knocked on Mrs. Anderson's door. “You can come in, the door isn’t locked, “ Mrs. Anderson said .” Oh, it’s you, Agnes, “ she added. “ I came to see you Helen, I know how you feel, so there’s no need to ask you anything about how you are doing at all “ Agnes said as she got close to Mrs. Anderson to give her a warm hug. “ my home is falling apart, and Peter is accusing me of something I know nothing about, can you believe it, it hurt so bad Agnes, I know you understand, I’m so confused, How is Maya’s blood type different from ours, far different, I’ve known no man apart from Peter and he knows that, how can an Anderson cheat without getting caught, you know people got their eyes all over us and all around us “ Mrs Anderson said. “ I believe you Helen, I think you, but now you need to prove your innocence, you need to get a dna test done, as soon as possible, “ Agnes said as she kept hugging Helen. “ that’s the best idea, but what happens when it comes out negative and Maya isn’t our child, how do we cope with it “ Mrs. Anderson added . “ you know that’s going to be the results, you should know that Maya isn’t your daughter by now “ Agnes said. Agenda kept consoling Mrs. Anderson as they both sat and thought of what would happen next. The chaos that was about to be unleashed.

Meanwhile, back at Mr. Anderson’s office, he was out having coffee with one of his close friends. When Jake’s results came in, he opened them, and the results showed that Jake had the same blood type as them. He was calm for some time and lifted his head. Sittingg at the other side, John noticed his facial expression and thought it was about his daughter Maya.

John: I heard about what happened to your daughter, Peter. I’m really sorry about that. She should be fine soon. I guess

Peter: Well, that’s not the problem now; there’s a more serious problem.

John: What is it?

Peter: The girl’s blood doesn’t match mine or my wife's.

John: How’s that possible?

Peter: I don’t know. I’m beginning to think that maybe Helen cheated on me or something.

John: That’s not possible. An Anderson can’t cheat. You know how popular your family is and how there are eyes all over you guys. Neither you nor your wife can cheat secretly.

Peter: I don’t know what to do now.

John: Have you tried getting a DNA test done

Peter: No, not yet. I don’t know how Helen is going to feel about it. She might think otherwise.

John: It’s better to get this done, know the truth, and work on it before word reaches town.

Peter: I’ll think about it.

Just then, John checked the time and told Peter it was time to go home. John advised Peter to consider what he said and complete the DNA test as soon as possible.

When Mr. Anderson got home from work that day, he went straight to his room. We need to talk, he said to Mrs. Anderson. “Talk about what?” Mrs. Anderson said. I, too, have something I’d like to suggest to you. “Let’s get a DNA test, “ they both said in unison. I guess that’s it then. Mrs . Anderson said.

Jake came back from school moody. He went straight to his room and said nothing to his mom, who was downstairs. Mrs. Anderson stood up, climbed up the stairs, and knocked on Jake’s door. “ Jake, you have to let me in, let’s have a conversation,” she said . “ go away mom, I don’t want to talk to you “ Jake said . “ sweetie, I know , it’s hard for you and it’s harder for me too, one thing I know is that it’s going to be more difficult as time goes on, you have to let me in Jake, let’s talk about this, Jake, Jake “ Mrs. Anderson said while still knocking at Jake’s door. She eventually gave up at a point and walked back to her room. And straight to bed, hoping the next day brings relief.