loaded weapon. His fingers trembled,

he whispered

. "She's not your possession, Zan. She's my daughter.

eyes. "How long

e him answers. But her silence wouldn't erase th

he said coldly. "The day you chose

bbed. "You ne

ever a

sed me for a merger with FalconCorp and disappeared. You cut

t know y

apped. "You knew who I was. What we had. You

was right. And worse, he had nothin

er. "You don't get to feel guilty now. You don't get to cr

rying," he

said. "You never c

now. "You're a strategist, Zan. You wal

I haven't slept a full night since I saw her face in that photo. Since

xhaled

ame here because guilt is cheaper than responsibility. B

placing his hand

ong. And because she des

has school, she has ballet on Saturdays, she has bedtime stories

rying to r

ecause y

the ticking of the minimalist

ped. "I want to

sbelief. "Know her? She's not a startup, Za

my da

sharp and clear. "No, Zan. She's mine. Unt

enly, for the first time in years, she saw the boy beneath the

d thinking abou

her head

ean

er over people, deals over love, and when I needed you m

racked. "Yo

ightened on t

g. Foolish.

ere a

le

n them like a storm

r?" she asked after

ed up, s

nd pulled out a manila folde

eld i

it-and

irth certific

DNA req

. No drama. If you're serious about kn

might burn his skin. "I don

"This isn't about belief, Zan. It's ab

lowly. "And

d-a bitter smile

r w

to choo

d. "You're giving

s a person. Once you gave up the right

. Like he understood what it meant to

paper into h

o it,"

oo

turned

ached the do

e said softly. "Even wit

ched around the e

e said without turning. "With

oor o

epped

it clicked shu

alling stranger