Chapter 1 - The Truth in the Room
The air in the delivery room turned to ice,
as Doctor Morrison held my sweet baby boy close to his chest.
Julian stepped forward,
his polished shoes clicking against the clean floor tiles.
"What kind of nonsense is this,"
Julian sneered,
setting his expensive coffee cup on the side table.
"I am his father,
and I demand you hand him over right now."
Doctor Morrison did not step aside,
his arms remained locked around the infant protectively.
"Julian,
I know your medical history perfectly,"
the doctor said,
his voice trembling with deep emotion.
"I was the one who performed your secret surgery,
the one your mother forced you to undergo five years ago."
My breath caught in my throat,
and I struggled to sit up against the pillows.
"What surgery?"
I asked,
my voice cracking with exhaustion.
Julian's face flushed a deep,
angry red color.
"Shut up,
Morrison,"
Julian hissed,
taking a threatening step toward the older man.
"You are bound by doctor-patient confidentiality,
and you will ruin your career if you speak another word."
The doctor looked at me,
his eyes filled with profound pity and regret.
"Vivian,
he cannot have children,
because he had a permanent vasectomy before you even met him."
The words hung heavily in the air,
shattering the remaining silence of the room.
I stared at Julian,
my mind racing through the past years of our marriage.
He had always told me we were trying,
he had always blamed my stressful work for our empty nursery.
"You lied to me,"
I whispered,
tears finally spilling over my hot cheeks.
"You knew all along you were sterile,
yet you let your mother call me broken."
Julian laughed,
a cold and hollow sound that lacked any real warmth.
"Of course I lied,
because a wife who thinks she is flawed is a wife who never leaves."
He looked down at my son,
his eyes narrowing into slits of pure suspicion.
"So tell me,
Vivian,
who is the real father of this little bastard?"
I shook my head,
completely lost in my own confusion.
"There is nobody else,
I swear to God there has never been anyone else."
Doctor Morrison stepped closer to the light,
unwrapping the baby's blanket slightly.
"Look at his left shoulder,
Julian,"
the doctor commanded with absolute certainty.
"Look at the distinct birthmark shaped like a crescent moon,
and look at the unique silver hue in his eyes."
Julian looked,
and his breath suddenly hitched in his throat.
"That is impossible,"
Julian whispered,
stumbling backward until his back hit the door.
"That mark only belongs to one family in this entire city."
"Yes,"
Doctor Morrison said,
wiping a stray tear from his own face.
"This child carries the pure genetic legacy of the Wright family,
the true owners of the Meridian empire."
I looked at my beautiful boy,
completely unaware of the storm brewing around his crib.
He had the mark,
and his tiny eyes shone with a brilliant,
unfamiliar silver light.
My mind drifted back to the dark hallways of the Meridian building,
where I had worked late every night.
I remembered the mysterious man who always left a single white rose on my cleaning cart,
the man I had never actually met in person.
"This is a nightmare,"
Julian muttered,
his hands shaking as he pulled out his phone.
"My mother needs to know about this immediately,
she will know how to handle this disaster."
He bolted out of the room,
leaving the door swinging wildly in his wake.
Doctor Morrison walked over to my bed,
gently placing my son into my trembling arms.
"You are safe for now,
Vivian,"
he murmured softly.
"But you need to prepare yourself,
because a massive war is about to begin over this child."
I held my son tight,
feeling his small heart beating against mine.
"We will fight them,"
I whispered into his soft hair,
"we will win,
no matter what it takes."
The hospital room felt smaller now,
as the weight of the secret settled into my bones.
I looked at the clock on the wall,
noting that the sun was finally beginning to rise.
A new day had started,
and my old life was officially gone forever.
I looked at the file under my mattress mentally,
remembering every single piece of evidence I had gathered.
May you like
The game had changed completely,
and I was no longer the victim they wanted me to be.
