Arlene settled her glasses on the bridge of her nose and pointed to a red arrow sticker near the bottom of the page.

“This entry restores your legal parenthood, Claire,” Arlene said.

“Line fourteen needs the living mother’s signature.”

She passed a black ink pen across the counter.

Claire took the pen, her hand steady as she moved closer to the marble counter.

She paused for two long seconds, looking down at my name printed clearly beside her own.

I stood next to her in the bright fluorescent light of the public hall and watched the dark ink soak into the clean white paper.

Claire signed her real name on the corrected state vital record in front of the court clerk.