Chapter 2 - The Sixty-Second Interrogation
The massive soundstage doors thudded shut with the heavy, echoing permanence of a vault closing, sealing the three of us inside with two of Adrian’s personal guards stationed at the perimeter. The chaotic noise of the production crew had vanished entirely, leaving behind an agonizing vacuum.
""You shouldn't be here, Adrian,"" I managed to say, forcing every ounce of panic down into my stomach. My voice shook only slightly, a small victory given that my heart was hammering against my ribs like a caged bird. ""You have no business with me. You made that abundantly clear six years ago.""
Adrian ignored my words entirely. He slowly crouched down onto one knee, descending until his line of sight was level with Noah. It was an astonishing sight—the most feared corporate raider on Wall Street kneeling on a scuffed studio floor, his thousand-dollar trousers scraping the dust.
""What's your name, son?"" Adrian asked, his voice shedding its icy razor edge, replaced by an unsteady softness that made my spine tingle.
Noah looked at Adrian, then looked up at me as if asking for permission. When I gave him a faint, protective nod, Noah turned back to the billionaire. ""Noah Bennett. And I'm not your son. My mom said my dad is an astronaut who got lost in deep space.""
A sharp, humorless twitch touched the corner of Adrian’s jaw. Slowly, he stood back up to his towering height, his eyes narrowing as he bored into me. ""An astronaut, Claire? Really? That was the best fairy tale you could invent to erase me?""
""You erased yourself!"" I snapped, my temper finally flaring through the paralyzing terror. I stepped in front of Noah, breaking their line of sight. ""You chose your side, Adrian. You chose Vanessa. You chose to destroy my reputation, to let your legal team threaten me into silence, and to cast me out like garbage. You don't get to march in here six years later and demand answers to questions you never earned the right to ask!""
""I never threatened you,"" Adrian replied instantly, his eyebrows pulling together in genuine bewilderment before hardening into stone. ""And I sure as hell didn't know you were carrying my child. You walked out! You vanished without leaving a note, a forwarding address, or a single trace. I turned New York upside down for three months trying to find you!""
""Oh, please, spare me the revisionist history,"" I scoffed, bitter laughter spilling past my lips. ""I came to your office that afternoon, Adrian! I had our eight-week ultrasound right there in my purse! I stood outside your door, and I heard Vanessa sobbing inside. I heard her ask if you were finally choosing her, and I heard you say, clear as day: 'You've been wronged for long enough.' You traded me in for her sob story and let her ruin me!""
Adrian went dead silent. A strange, fleeting flicker of dread passed across his features, followed by a profound, chilling realization. He took a half-step forward, his voice dropping to a harsh whisper. ""You heard that? Through the door? You never came in to ask me what she was talking about?""
""Why would I? The next morning my contracts were torn up, my agent dropped me, and a smear campaign had branded me an unhinged diva on every entertainment blog in America! Who else had the money and power to bury me overnight except you?""
Before Adrian could answer, Noah tugged hard on the hem of my blouse. ""Mommy, you're shaking. Is this man making you sad?""
The innocence in Noah's voice caused Adrian to flinch visibly. For a man who dictated the movement of billions of dollars without batting an eyelash, the sight of his own child looking at him with suspicion and fear was clearly a brutal gut-punch.
Adrian exhaled slowly, raising both hands in a rare gesture of surrender. ""Marcus,"" he commanded without turning his head.
His assistant stepped forward instantly. ""Yes, Mr. Blackwood?""
""Call the medical director at St. Jude’s Private Clinic. Have Dr. Vance prep a mobile genetic analysis unit. I want DNA swabs processed within three hours. Priority Alpha.""
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Panic seized me again. ""No! You can't touch him! You have no legal rights to him!""
Adrian met my frantic eyes, his own burning with an unshakeable, terrifying resolve. ""I am not taking him from you, Claire. Not today. But if that boy carries my blood, nobody in this universe is going to keep me from being his father. Now, we are leaving this studio together. You can either walk into my car voluntarily, or my team can carry your belongings while you protest. But you are not vanishing on me a second time.""
