Chapter 14 - The Test We Never Took
Dominic did not accuse me.
That mattered.
He simply asked Dr. Levin, “Who ordered the test?”
“I don’t know. The request came through the hospital legal office.”
I stared at the floor, trying to understand how many people had touched my medical life without permission.
Rebecca demanded the records.
By morning, we had them.
The test was real.
Both babies were Dominic’s.
I almost laughed again from pure exhaustion.
“So all this was for nothing?” I asked.
“No,” Rebecca said. “The testing gave them confirmation that both children trigger the trust.”
Two children. Two future voting blocks held in guardianship until adulthood.
Victor had planned to control one child through forged custody authority.
Kane wanted both.
Dominic paced the room. “Why would Kane care about shares? He hates the family.”
“Because revenge is expensive,” Cassandra said.
Ortiz entered carrying a folder. “We found Victor.”
“Alive?”
“Yes. He turned himself in.”
That shocked everyone.
Victor was waiting in an interview room downtown.
He looked twenty years older than he had at the pier.
“I made a deal with Kane,” he admitted. “I thought he would finance the proxy fight. I did not know he intended to take the children.”
I leaned across the table. “You forged my medical consent.”
“Yes.”
“You planned to separate one baby from me.”
Victor looked away.
“Yes.”
My hands shook.
Dominic said, “Look at her when you answer.”
Victor lifted his eyes.
“I told myself it was temporary,” he said.
“You told yourself whatever let you sleep.”
He nodded once.
Then he gave Ortiz an address.
“Kane has a house outside Lake Forest. He stores paper records there. He does not trust servers.”
Ortiz stood.
Victor added, “There is one more thing.”
We turned.
“He has someone inside Ava’s legal team.”
Rebecca went still.
May you like
Victor smiled without humor.
“And they have already filed the separation papers.”
