"MY HUSBAND ABANDONED ME AND OUR NEWBORN AT THE HOSPITAL—THEN A TATTOOED STRANGER SIGNED THE “FATHER” LINE… AND REVEALED THE SECRET THAT BROUGHT MY EX-HUSBAND TO HIS KNEES

Luka instantly shifted his weight, stepping in front of me to shield my body with his broad frame, his hand sliding smoothly beneath his coat toward his shoulder holster.

"Mark," I choked out, staring at the man I had spent four years loving. "You abandoned your daughter in a hospital room! How could you do this?"

Mark let out a bitter, cold laugh. "Daughter? Clara, please! I married you because your father was on the verge of a fifty-million-dollar breakthrough! But the old fool died before he gave me the access codes! I wasted four years playing house with you!"

"And Chloe?" I asked, my voice laced with venom.

"Chloe is my ticket to the board of directors at Vance Pharma," Mark sneered. "Once Julian gets the M-17 therapy from your baby's cord blood, Vance Pharma becomes a global monopoly—and I become CEO."

Julian Vance stepped forward, his dark eyes fixed on the black drive in Luka’s hand.

"Hand over the drive, Mr. Moretti," Julian said, his voice smooth and cold as marble. "You're a private security contractor with a juvenile record. You don't belong in this game. Give me the drive, and I’ll ensure Mark grants Clara a generous cash settlement in the divorce."

Luka didn't budge. He looked at Julian with an expression of sheer contempt.

"You haven't changed, Vance," Luka said coldly. "Ten years ago, you hired street kids like me to steal research from independent labs. Arthur Miller caught me breaking into his office. But instead of calling the police, he paid for my night school, gave me a job, and helped me clean up my life."

Julian's lip curled in disgust. "Arthur was a sentimental fool."

"Arthur was a genius who knew you were poisoning your own daughter with unapproved medical trials!" Luka countered, his voice booming through the empty warehouse.

My head snapped toward Julian. "What?"

"Chloe's illness isn't natural, Clara," Luka revealed, keeping his eyes locked on Mark's guards. "Julian Vance tested an early, flawed version of Project M-17 on his own daughter five years ago to beat a patent deadline. He ruined her immune system. That's why he needs Maya’s cord blood—to fix his own criminal mistake before federal inspectors find out!"

Mark looked at Julian, a flicker of doubt crossing his face for the first time. "Julian... is that true?"