Chapter 8: The Bloodline Hidden in the Files
The message remained on my phone.
*“Do not trust the DNA test Adrian gave you.””*
I stared at those words until they blurred.
Not because I didn’t understand them.
Because I understood them too well.
For years, one document had haunted me.
A piece of paper I had never questioned.
A test result.
The reason I believed I understood my own family.
The reason I never doubted where Luca belonged.
I remembered the day Adrian brought it to me.
It was six years earlier.
Luca was three.
I had just returned from a business trip when Adrian arrived at my house carrying a folder.
He looked serious.
Concerned.
Almost uncomfortable.
“Victor,” he had said, “there’s something you need to know.””
At the time, I thought he was worried about me.
About the company.
About family.
I never imagined he was planting a seed that would grow into years of fear.
“What is it?”” I had asked.
He placed the folder on the table.
“A test.””
I remembered my hands shaking as I opened it.
The words were clear.
The result was negative.
The report claimed there was a possibility Luca was not biologically my son.
I remembered the silence afterward.
The terrible silence.
Then Adrian had placed a hand on my shoulder.
“I’m sorry.””
Those two words destroyed me.
Because I believed him.
Not because I wanted to.
Because he was my brother.
And because the idea of losing Luca felt impossible.
But after that day, I changed.
I became more protective.
More afraid.
I never told Luca.
I never told Isabella.
I never told anyone.
I buried the doubt.
Now I wondered if the doubt had never belonged to me.
Maybe it had been given to me.
Created.
Designed.
I looked at Daniel.
“Find the original DNA test.””
He frowned.
“What?””
“The one Adrian gave me.””
Marcus looked up.
“You still have it?””
“Yes.””
I walked toward my office.
“It’s in my private safe.””
Daniel followed.
“Victor, if Margaret is right—”
“She is.””
The certainty surprised even me.
Because for the first time in years, I wasn’t guessing.
I was seeing the pattern.
Everything led back to the same people.
The same plan.
The same lies.
Inside my office, I opened the safe.
The folder was exactly where I had left it.
Untouched.
For years, I couldn’t even look at it.
Now I opened it without hesitation.
The report was there.
White paper.
Black letters.
A lie disguised as proof.
Daniel took it carefully.
“I’ll verify the laboratory.””
“No.””
He looked at me.
“I want more than verification.””
“What do you want?””
“I want to know who created it.””
Marcus stepped closer.
“Victor.””
I looked at him.
“There’s something you should know.””
“What?””
He hesitated.
“I remember Adrian receiving this report.””
My eyes narrowed.
“What?””
“He asked me to pick it up.””
The room went still.
“You picked it up?””
“Yes.””
“From where?””
Marcus swallowed.
“A private clinic.””
“When?””
“Six years ago.””
I stared at him.
“Why didn’t you tell me?””
His expression broke.
“Because I thought it was a family matter.””
I laughed bitterly.
“Everyone in this family seems to know everything except me.””
Marcus looked away.
I took the report.
“Which clinic?””
He gave me the name.
I recognized it.
A prestigious private facility.
One of the most expensive in the city.
The kind of place where wealthy families went when they wanted privacy.
Daniel immediately picked up his phone.
“I’ll make calls.””
“No.””
He stopped.
“What?””
“I’ll go myself.””
Daniel looked concerned.
“Victor.””
“I spent years believing a piece of paper over my own child.””
I looked at Luca’s photograph on my desk.
“I’m not making that mistake again.””
An hour later, we arrived at the clinic.
The building was modern and quiet.
The kind of place designed to make people feel safe.
But I had learned something.
Beautiful places could hide ugly things.
The receptionist looked nervous when I gave my name.
That was the first sign.
The second was when the director immediately agreed to see me.
People don’t prepare themselves for conversations unless they know one is coming.
Dr. Samuel Hart entered the room.
A man in his sixties.
Professional.
Calm.
Too calm.
“Mr. Romano.””
I shook his hand.
“Doctor.””
He gestured toward the chair.
“How can I help you?””
I placed the DNA report on the desk.
His face changed.
Only slightly.
But enough.
“You recognize this.””
He looked at the paper.
“I’ve seen many reports.””
“Not this one?””
A pause.
Then:
“Yes.””
The room became silent.
Daniel leaned forward.
“Who requested this test?””
Dr. Hart looked uncomfortable.
“I can’t discuss patient information.””
I placed another document on the desk.
A legal authorization.
“You can now.””
He read it.
Then sighed.
“The test was requested by Adrian Romano.””
Not surprising.
But painful.
“Was the sample mine?””
“Yes.””
“And Luca’s?””
“Yes.””
I stared.
“Was it handled correctly?””
Dr. Hart looked at me.
“What do you mean?””
“Was the process legitimate?””
His silence told me everything.
“Doctor.””
He looked down.
“I was pressured.””
“By who?””
He didn’t answer.
“Who?””
Finally, he whispered:
“Adrian.””
My jaw tightened.
“What did he do?””
“He threatened to expose private financial information about the clinic.””
Daniel’s expression hardened.
“So he manipulated you.””
Dr. Hart nodded.
“I should have refused.””
“But you didn’t.””
“No.””
“Why?””
The doctor looked ashamed.
“Because I was afraid.””
I understood fear.
I had spent months allowing fear to guide me.
“What did he ask you to change?””
Dr. Hart opened a drawer.
My heart stopped.
He pulled out a small envelope.
“I kept a copy.””
Daniel looked surprised.
“Why?””
“Because I knew one day someone would ask.””
Inside was another report.
The real report.
The original.
Dr. Hart placed both documents side by side.
The difference was immediate.
The original showed something completely different.
A positive match.
A biological connection.
A father and son.
My vision blurred.
For years.
For years I had carried a pain that wasn’t real.
I had looked at my own child and wondered if I belonged to him.
Because my brother wanted me to.
I covered my face.
Not because I was ashamed.
Because I was grieving.
Grieving all the moments I had lost.
All the times I looked at Luca and wondered.
All the times I held back because of a lie.
Daniel placed a hand on my shoulder.
“Victor.””
I looked at the doctor.
“Who else knew?””
He hesitated.
“Adrian.””
“Only Adrian?””
Another pause.
Then:
“No.””
My stomach tightened.
“Who?””
Dr. Hart looked at the report.
“Someone else came with him.””
“Who?””
The doctor took a breath.
“Your wife.””
The room went silent.
“Elena?””
He nodded.
“She was there.””
I felt the air leave my lungs.
“No.””
“She signed paperwork.””
“What paperwork?””
“Authorization.””
Daniel looked confused.
“But Elena wasn’t married to Victor six years ago.””
Dr. Hart nodded.
“I know.””
That made no sense.
“How could she authorize anything?””
The doctor looked at me.
“She didn’t authorize the test.””
He opened another file.
“She authorized the release of the results.””
I stared.
“What?””
Dr. Hart placed the document down.
A signature.
A date.
A name.
Elena.
Six years ago.
Before she married me.
Before she entered my family.
Before anyone knew she existed.
My hands went cold.
“She knew.””
Daniel whispered.
“She knew about Luca before she met you.””
The realization hit harder than anything before.
Elena hadn’t entered my life by chance.
She hadn’t simply married a wealthy widower.
She had already known my family.
She had already known Luca.
She had already known the secret Adrian wanted hidden.
My phone buzzed.
A message.
Unknown number.
I opened it.
A photograph appeared.
It was old.
A picture of Adrian.
Elena.
And another person.
Standing outside this exact clinic.
The date was visible.
Six years earlier.
Below the image was a message.
*“You finally found the beginning.””*
May you like
Then another message appeared.
*“Now find out why Elena needed Luca gone before she ever met you.””*
