Chapter 1 - The Forged Threat
The object Cassandra pulled from her worn leather tote bag was not a photo or a baby blanket. It was a crisp, legal-sized envelope, the edges slightly frayed from being handled a thousand times over the last three years. Her hands trembled as she placed it on the tray table between us, shielding it from the curious eyes of little Luke and Violet.
“You asked why I never told you,” Cassandra whispered, her voice thick with unshed tears. “I did, Damon. I came to the Prescott Technologies tower the day I saw the ultrasound. It was raining. I waited in the lobby for four hours. And then, your head of security handed me this.”
I stared at the envelope. It bore the embossed gold crest of my own company.
I reached out and opened the flap. Inside were two documents. The first was a copy of a cashier’s check made out to Cassandra Hayes for two million dollars. The second was a brutal, ironclad non-disclosure agreement and a letter of relinquishment.
Ms. Hayes, the letter read. Accept this severance. Terminate the pregnancy, or raise the problem quietly on your own. If you ever approach me, my company, or the press, my legal team will ensure you are buried in litigation until you cannot afford to feed yourself. Do not mistake my past affection for a future obligation.
At the bottom of the page was my signature.
My blood turned to absolute ice. The roaring engines of the aircraft faded into a suffocating silence. I stared at the looping ‘D’ and the sharp, aggressive slash of the ‘P’. It was a flawless forgery. It was the exact signature I used on hundreds of financial authorizations every single week.
“I didn't write this,” I choked out, my chest seizing with a terrifying realization. “Cassandra, I swear to God on my life, I have never seen this document before. I never authorized a check. I never knew you came to the building.”
Cassandra looked at me, her green eyes searching my face for the lie she had believed for three agonizing years. “Your head of security, Marcus, handed it to me directly. He said you were in a board meeting and didn't have time for a gold-digger’s tears.”
The name struck me like a physical blow. Marcus wasn't just my head of security. He was the personal attack dog for Richard Calder—my former mentor, current rival, and the very man who was currently waiting in Denver to try and steal the $780 million Merritt Systems acquisition out from under me.
Three years ago, Calder had been my Chief Operating Officer. He had access to my digital signatures, my schedule, and my security team.
“Calder,” I breathed, the sheer, demonic scale of the betrayal locking my jaw. Calder had known that if I found out Cassandra was pregnant, I would have dropped my obsession with the corporate expansion to be a father. I would have stepped back. I would have been happy. And Calder couldn't steal the company from a man who was awake and focused on his family.
“He forged my signature,” I told her, my voice dropping to a lethal, vibrating octave. “He intercepted you to keep me isolated. He stole three years of my life. He stole my children from me.”
Cassandra gasped softly, her hand flying to her mouth. The walls she had built to protect herself from the monster she thought I was were suddenly crumbling. “Damon… you really didn’t know?”
“If I had known you were carrying my children,” I said fiercely, leaning closer so only she could hear, “I would have burned the entire city to the ground to keep you safe. I never stopped looking for you, Cass. You just vanished.”
May you like
Before she could answer, a small, warm hand tugged on my cashmere sleeve. I looked down. Luke was holding out a red crayon. “Angry man is crying,” the little boy observed innocently.
I reached up, shocked to find my cheeks wet. I took the crayon from my son, my hand shaking. “I’m not angry anymore, buddy,” I whispered. “I’m just really glad I found you.”
