Chapter 2 - The Bloodline Secret
Morning arrived in Westchester wrapped in dense gray fog. Hannah awoke in a bedroom three times the size of her Queens apartment. The sheets were silk, the furniture was antique mahogany, but the electronic lock on the heavy oak door reminded her that she was a prisoner.
A quiet knock sounded before the door opened. Dominic stood in the hallway, holding a silver tray with fresh coffee, warm croissants, and a small glass vial wrapped in medical tape.
"Eat," he said, placing the tray on the vanity table.
"Am I allowed to ask what the vial is for?" Hannah asked, sitting up and pulling the velvet duvet over her collarbone.
"Dr. Vance is in the clinic downstairs," Dominic replied, his voice devoid of warmth. "He needs a cheek swab from you. And a blood sample."
Hannah glared at him. "A DNA test? I told you, I am not their mother! I’ve never been pregnant in my life! Do you think I gave birth to triplets in secret and forgot about them?"
"I don't know what to think, Hannah," Dominic said, stepping closer to the bed. The harsh morning light caught the jagged scar over his eyebrow, making him look even more ruthless. "In my world, coincidences get men killed. My daughters haven't uttered a sound since the day they were born. Neurologists told me their silence was a psychological response to trauma—the bomb explosion that killed Julianna while she was in labor. Yet yesterday, they looked at a woman they have never met and spoke."
"Maybe it was just a coincidence. Maybe 'Mama' is just the easiest syllable for a toddler to pronounce!"
"They didn't call the nannies Mama," Dominic countered smoothly. "They didn't call the pediatricians Mama. They called you Mama. And until Dr. Vance finishes his sequence analysis, you remain here."
An hour later, Hannah was seated in the mansion's private medical bay while Dr. Vance—a soft-spoken man who looked far too gentle to work for a mob boss—drew two tubes of blood from her arm. Dominic stood in the doorway, arms crossed over his chest, watching every second of the procedure with hawk-like precision.
"How long will the results take?" Dominic demanded as the doctor labeled the tubes.
"With our private sequencer, six hours, Mr. Vale," Dr. Vance answered respectfully. "I will cross-reference Miss Mercer's genetic markers with the triplets' profile."
While they waited, Hannah was allowed into the sunlit playroom where Lily, Grace, and Emma were playing with wooden blocks. The moment Hannah entered, the three girls dropped their toys and rushed toward her. Lily grabbed her hands, Grace snuggled against her waist, and Emma looked up with bright, intelligent blue eyes.
"Story," Emma said clearly.
Hannah gasped, dropping to her knees. "What did you say, sweetie?"
"Story," Emma repeated, pointing to a leather-bound book of fairy tales sitting on a low shelf.
Dominic, who was watching from the doorway, froze. His hand gripped the doorframe so tightly his knuckles turned white. Two years of absolute silence broken in less than twenty-four hours.
Hannah picked up the book and sat on the rug, drawing the three little girls into her lap. She opened the pages and began reading in a gentle, expressive voice. Dominic watched from the threshold, his dark eyes shifting between his daughters' joyful expressions and the soft, radiant warmth of the woman reading to them. For the first time in two years, the cold mansion felt alive.
At 4:00 PM, Dr. Vance knocked on the study door. Dominic was sitting at his glass desk, reviewing ledger sheets, while Hannah sat on the leather sofa, cradling a sleeping Grace in her arms.
"Mr. Vale," Dr. Vance said, his voice trembling slightly. He held a manila folder in his hands. His face was chalky white.
Dominic stood up immediately. "What are the results?"
Dr. Vance swallowed hard, glancing nervously at Hannah before looking back at Dominic. "The DNA match is conclusive. Miss Mercer is not a distant relative, nor is she a random stranger."
"Speak clearly, Vance," Dominic growled, his patience snapping.
"Miss Mercer is the biological mother of Lily, Grace, and Emma," Dr. Vance revealed, his voice barely above a whisper. "She shares fifty percent of their genetic material. Legally, scientifically, and biologically... those children are hers."
The silence in the room was deafening. Hannah almost dropped the sleeping child in her lap. Her breath hitched in her throat, her chest heaving as terror and confusion surged through her veins.
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"That's impossible!" Hannah shouted, tears blinding her vision. "I've never been with a man! I've never been pregnant! I swear on my dead father's soul, I never had children!"
Dominic's face turned to stone. The air in the room grew dangerously cold. He stepped toward Hannah, his voice dropping into a deadly whisper. "If you never gave birth to them... then how did your blood end up inside my dead wife?"
