I could decline contact, defer it, or authorize a careful exchange of information.

I chose to hear more.

It was not a court finding and not yet the final confirmation of a father-daughter relationship.

It was enough for the service to begin verifying a possible match with the consent of the people involved.

The name associated with the other side was Gavin Rochester.

I knew the name from financial news Patrick watched.

Vanguard Global.

A man whose face appeared beneath headlines about acquisitions and markets far removed from my daily life.