Chapter 6 - The Silver Box Mystery

The silence in the study was suffocating.
"What lies are you spewing?" I snarled. "Ethan is my blood!"
"Elena was pregnant before you married her," Victoria said calmly, taking a slow step toward the desk. "She was carrying the child of Matteo De Luca—our greatest enemy. I couldn't let a De Luca bastard inherit the Moretti empire. I poisoned Elena seven years ago to end the bloodline, but the baby survived her death. I waited until tonight—his eighth birthday—to finish what should have been done in the cradle."
Sophia covered Ethan’s ears, weeping quietly. Ethan looked up at me with terrified, tear-filled eyes. "Dad? Is it true?"
I didn't look back at Victoria. I kept my gaze locked onto my boy.
"You are my son," I said, every word dripping with absolute truth. "You have been my son since the moment you took your first breath, and no piece of paper or bloodline changes that."
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"How touching," Victoria sneered, reaching into her coat. "Destroying you emotionally was always the backup plan, Dominic. But ending it quickly works too."
She pulled out a small silver remote control—the detonator for the estate's backup generators.