Chapter 1 - The Security Call
|
The hospital room doors burst open as two uniformed security guards hurried into the room. They took in the scene instantly: a pale mother sitting in her hospital bed clutching a newborn, and a man in a black tuxedo pressing folded legal documents toward her while a woman in a stained wedding dress backed toward the corner.
"Is there a problem here, ma'am?" the lead guard asked, his hand resting near his belt as his eyes locked onto Dominic.
"My ex-husband was asked to leave multiple times," I said, my voice steady despite the trembling in my legs. "He is trespassing on private medical property and harassing me less than an hour after labor."
Dominic stepped back, his face flushing dark red. He tried to straighten his jacket, struggling to regain the commanding posture he wore in corporate boardrooms.
"This is a private family matter," Dominic snapped at the guard. "I am her ex-husband, and that is—"
"That is a child you denied existed two hours ago," Celeste interrupted, her voice cracking like dry glass.
She stared at Dominic as if seeing him for the first time without his charm. Her hands shook so violently that pearl beads popped off her lace sleeve, clattering onto the linoleum floor.
"Celeste, keep quiet," Dominic hissed through his teeth.
"Don't tell me to keep quiet!" she shouted, her mascara running in black rivers down her pale cheeks. "You left our wedding reception, Dominic! You told two hundred guests you had an emergency client call! You dragged me into a hospital ward to intimidate a woman who just gave birth to your baby!"
The second guard stepped between Dominic and my bed.
"Sir, you need to leave right now," the guard said sternly. "Or we will escort you out in handcuffs and hand you over to the city police."
Dominic looked at me, his eyes burning with pure venom.
May you like
"You think you won, Evelyn?" he whispered, leaning over the guard's shoulder. "You think having a baby changes anything? The merger closes on Friday. By next week, you won't have a cent to your name."
"Leave, Dominic," I said softly, looking down at my daughter's tiny face. "Before I show security what else is in that folder."
