CLAIRE

The words hung in the air like a bomb and Julian's face went completely blank. "What?" he asked quietly.

"I'm eight weeks pregnant," Vanessa repeated. "I just found out last week, Claire, please, you can't send a pregnant woman to prison."

I felt like I couldn't breathe. Pregnant, Vanessa was pregnant. "Whose is it?" Julian asked, his voice hard.

Vanessa was quiet for a moment. "Ethan's."

Julian's hand tightened on the phone. "That's not Claire's problem," he said.

"But it should matter!" Vanessa cried. "I made a mistake, a terrible mistake, but I'm carrying a child, an innocent child who didn't do anything wrong."

"You should have thought about...