Chapter 6 - The Unbroken Thread
Dr. Harrison’s hands were steady, but his eyes were filled with profound shock as he handed the printed report to Matteo.
Matteo scanned the scientific numbers, his breath catching in his throat. He handed the paper to Liana.
At the bottom of the page, highlighted in bold black ink, were the definitive results:
DNA PROBABILITY OF MATERNITY: 99.98% SUBJECT A (LIANA GRAVES) IS THE BIOLOGICAL MOTHER OF SUBJECT B (INFANT). CHROMOSOMAL ANALYSIS CONFIRMS SUBJECT B IS BIOLOGICALLY FEMALE.
Liana stared at the paper. The words blurred before her eyes.
Her baby wasn't dead.
Her little girl—the child she had wept over, the child whose tiny grave she had visited under the cold gray skies three weeks ago—was alive. She was holding her right now in her arms.
A choked, ragged cry tore out of Liana’s throat. She pulled the baby tight against her heart, burying her face in the soft cotton of the infant’s onesie, sobbing so hard her entire body shook.
“My baby...” Liana wept, kissing the child’s forehead, her cheeks, her tiny hands over and over again. “My little girl... Clara... you’re alive... Mommy’s here... Mommy’s right here...”
The infant woke up from the vibration of Liana’s cries. But instead of screaming, the little girl let out a soft, happy coo, reaching her chubby little fingers up to stroke Liana’s wet lips.
Matteo stood over them, his chest heaving as he fought back his own emotion. He bowed his head, placing a heavy hand on Liana’s shoulder.
“She knew you,” Matteo whispered, his voice thick with unshed tears. “From the moment you walked into the foyer, she knew her mother had come back for her.”
“How did they hide her gender?” Liana asked through her tears, looking up at Matteo.
“In high-level medical fraud, it’s frighteningly simple,” Dr. Harrison explained softly. “With enough money and medical influence, birth certificates, hospital wristbands, and initial physical assessments can be completely fabricated. The baby was kept swaddled and isolated under the guise of ‘fragile health.’ No one outside of the core medical team was allowed to change her diapers or examine her.”
“And the woman who entered the nursery three weeks ago?” Liana asked, looking at Matteo.
“It was Isabella’s sister, Sofia Moretti,” Matteo revealed, his tone turning dangerously cold. “Sofia had a conscience. She couldn't live with the guilt of what her family had done. She broke into the mansion three weeks ago to leave your mother’s locket—a clue she knew would eventually link the baby to the lost Varric bloodline if anyone examined it closely.”
Suddenly, the red emergency light on the study desk began to flash rapidly.
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The heavy internal intercom chimed, and Marco’s panicked voice came through the speaker:
“Don Varric! We have a perimeter breach at the front gates! Multiple heavy vehicles are crashing through the security barriers! It’s the Morettis!”
