Chapter 21: The Billionaire’s Claim
Owen approached Ethan slowly.
Lily stepped in front of her son.
“You don’t get to claim him now.”
“I didn’t know he existed.”
“You knew before the crash.”
Owen’s jaw tightened.
“That’s what Victoria told you?”
“I heard your voice on the recording.”
News cameras moved closer.
Owen noticed them and changed his tone.
“Lily, you need medical attention.”
“I need you to stay away from my child.”
Within hours, the story exploded online.
The sweet ring bearer from the viral wedding was allegedly the secret son of one of the richest men in the country.
Owen’s attorneys filed for a DNA test.
Victoria withdrew her custody petition and publicly supported Owen.
Daniel called it a strategy.
“She knows Owen has more legal power.”
Lily was treated at a private hospital under police protection.
She explained that Victoria had held her in several locations since the crash, moving her whenever Mara got close.
“Why keep you alive?” Claire asked.
“She needed the password to the archive.”
“Did you give it to her?”
“No.”
Lily smiled weakly.
“She never understood that the archive wasn’t a place.”
Claire stared at her.
“What was it?”
Lily looked toward Ethan.
“Thomas hid the records inside something no one would destroy.”
Ethan was playing with the wooden train salvaged from Daniel’s apartment.
Claire remembered the message written during the break-in.
Give back what is ours.
She picked up the train.
One wheel felt heavier than the others.
Inside was a rolled strip of microfilm.
Before they could examine it, hospital security rushed into the room.
“Owen Mercer’s DNA results are back.”
Lily’s face lost all color.
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The test confirmed a 99.9 percent probability that Owen was Ethan’s father.
And the court had granted him temporary visitation rights.
