I sat in my car, the air conditioning on full blast, yet I felt chilled to the bone.
My burner phone buzzed.
It was an encrypted message from the lab.
My hands were shaking so badly I could barely hold the phone steady.
I opened the attachment and scrolled to the final page.
"Genetic testing has excluded Lorena Valenti as the biological mother of the subject, Nico."
The clinical sentence was a death knell, shattering my world.
The heir I had raised for five years, the child I had poured my entire heart into, was not my flesh and blood.
I pictured the woman from the marina, and her face seemed to merge with Nico’s in my mind.
The resemblance was undeniable.
Bile rose in my throat.
I remembered it so clearly. The family's designated clinic was as secure as a fortress. I had arranged the best delivery suite.
Why… five years later, had my son become someone else's child?
And where was the child I had carried for nine months?
I took out my phone and called Victor again.
"Two things."
"First, I need to know everything about the connection between Bianca and Nico."
"Second, find my son. I don't care what it takes."
Victor’s silence on the other end was all the confirmation I needed.
"Consider it done. I'm on it."
While I waited, I lived a charade.
I acted as if nothing was wrong, especially in front of Reuben.
But I rebuffed his advances and began sleeping in a separate room.
When Reuben questioned me, I simply cited my work with the foundation.
He gave me a hesitant look but didn't press the matter.
A week later, Victor placed a sealed file folder on my desk.
"We obtained a blood sample from Bianca through… special channels."
He paused, his voice low.
"We compared it with Nico's sample."
"The tests confirm they have a biological mother-son relationship."
Even though I had expected it, the sight of the report made me grip the edge of the desk to keep from collapsing.
Five years…
I had poured all my maternal love into a child who had another woman's blood running through his veins.
"We also investigated your delivery records. The woman who gave birth on the same day as you was Bianca."
"She was also in a VIP suite. The emergency contact listed was Reuben."
My head snapped up.
"What happened to her child?"
Victor consulted the file, his tone heavy.
"The official records state there were complications. The baby boy she delivered… reportedly died from an illness on his third day."
The scattered pieces of information were like loose pearls, now strung together by a horrifying thread of truth.
"Keep digging!"
"I want every single detail about that child!"
Victor was efficient.
He soon located the doctor who had handled both deliveries.
The doctor darted a nervous glance around the alley before leaning in, his voice a conspiratorial whisper.
"That night, both ladies went into labor at almost the same time. But the woman named Bianca… she had a rough time."
"Her labor was long, and the baby was born very weak."
He took the envelope of cash Victor handed him, his greedy eyes counting the bills.
"But that's just the official story… good enough to fool anyone who doesn't know better. But I was there."
"It was Don Reuben himself! He ordered the swap. That other baby didn't die—the records were forged!"
After his confession, the doctor snatched the envelope and scurried away.
Victor and I stood frozen in the alley.
My voice, when I finally found it, was a strained, hoarse whisper.
"Whatever the cost. Find my son."
