"Don't," Amara said, her voice cutting clean through the air as she stepped between Yvette and Julian, placing the baby firmly in his arms.
Then she turned.
In the middle of the road, with cars easing past on either side and the evening light settling flat around them, she faced Yvette. The world felt strangely still for a moment.
"What did you just say?" Amara asked.
Yvette lifted her chin, though her hands were trembling. "I said that is my baby." Her voice cracked at the edges, but she pushed through it. "You have no right. I will call the police. This is kidnapping."
Amara did not raise her voice. That was the thing about her when she was truly angry, she went quieter, not louder.
"Your baby." She said it slowly, tasting the words, finding them hollow.
"Fine. We are going to the hospital right now, and we are having the baby tested tonight." She took one step closer to Yvette.
