Chapter 3 - The Claim
Richard drove straight to David Mercer’s office.
He brought nothing from the safe-deposit box except Caroline’s letter.
Everything else went into a private company vault known only to Richard and his chief financial officer.
David’s office occupied the thirty-second floor of one of Richard’s downtown buildings.
Richard had known him for more than fifteen years.
David had prepared Richard’s marriage documents.
Caroline’s estate.
Maya’s trust.
Even Richard’s updated will.
Now Richard wondered whether every signature he had ever given the man had been used against him.
David stood when Richard entered.
“You look terrible.”
“My daughter was almost pushed down a staircase.”
“I know.”
“And Victoria called you before I did.”
David’s eyes shifted.
“She’s scared.”
“She should be.”
David gestured toward a chair.
Richard remained standing.
“What did she mean when she said Maya doesn’t belong to me?”
David exhaled.
“She is preparing to challenge your parental rights.”
Richard almost laughed.
“She assaulted my daughter.”
“She claims you misunderstood what happened.”
“There is video.”
“She will challenge the interpretation.”
Richard leaned across the desk.
“Answer my question.”
David hesitated.
“There are documents.”
“What documents?”
“Medical documents related to Maya’s birth.”
Richard stared at him.
“Maya is my daughter.”
“I’m not saying she isn’t.”
“You just told me Victoria intends to claim exactly that.”
David rubbed his forehead.
“Caroline had complications during fertility treatment.”
Richard already knew that.
They had spent nearly three years trying to have a child.
Maya’s birth had felt like a miracle.
“What does that have to do with Victoria?”
David’s silence answered before his words did.
“Caroline used a donor embryo.”
Richard stepped backward.
“No.”
“She never told you.”
“You’re lying.”
“I have the clinic paperwork.”
Richard grabbed the edge of the desk.
“Why would you have private fertility records?”
“Your father obtained them.”
The room seemed suddenly smaller.
“My father?”
David nodded.
“Edmund discovered what Caroline had done.”
Richard’s voice dropped.
“Who were the biological donors?”
David looked toward the windows.
“That is where this becomes complicated.”
“Tell me.”
“The egg donor was Victoria Langley.”
Richard did not move.
He could not.
For several seconds, even the noise of traffic below seemed to disappear.
Victoria.
The woman who had tried to hurt Maya.
The woman Caroline had warned him about.
“The sperm donor?”
David swallowed.
“I don’t know.”
Richard stepped around the desk.
“You have thirty seconds to stop lying to me.”
“I genuinely don’t know.”
David opened a locked drawer and pulled out a folder.
“These copies came from your father’s private files.”
Richard flipped through them.
Clinic forms.
Consent documents.
Donor identifiers.
Much of the information was redacted.
But Victoria’s signature was unmistakable.
Richard felt sick.
“Why would Caroline use Victoria’s embryo?”
“She may not have known who the donor was.”
Richard remembered the anonymous donor program they had used.
Caroline had handled most of the medical paperwork because Richard had been expanding the company internationally.
He had trusted her.
And Caroline had clearly discovered the truth later.
“Why did Victoria stay away for years?”
David’s answer was quiet.
“Because your father paid her.”
Richard looked up.
“Paid her for what?”
“To disappear.”
Richard’s phone vibrated.
Grace.
He answered immediately.
“Is Maya okay?”
Grace’s breathing was fast.
“Richard, someone came to the guesthouse.”
His chest tightened.
“Who?”
“I don’t know.”
“They were outside the gate asking for Maya.”
“Did they get inside?”
“No.”
“Call security.”
“I already did.”
Richard moved toward the door.
Then Grace said, “There’s something else.”
“What?”
“Maya says she recognizes him.”
Richard stopped.
“From where?”
Grace lowered her voice.
“She says she saw him with Victoria yesterday.”
Richard turned toward David.
David’s face had lost all color.
Richard saw it.
Recognition.
“Who was he?” Richard asked.
Grace described the man.
Gray hair.
Tall.
Scar beside his left ear.
Richard watched David carefully.
David whispered one name.
“Martin Cross.”
Richard remembered the name from Caroline’s list.
“Who is Martin?”
David closed his eyes.
“Victoria’s brother.”
Richard grabbed his jacket.
“And why is he looking for Maya?”
David spoke before Richard reached the door.
“Because if Caroline’s records are accurate, Maya may inherit far more than the Hale estate.”
Richard turned.
“How much?”
David looked directly at him.
May you like
“Close to nine hundred million dollars.”
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