Chapter 4 - The Broken Past
Maya wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, leaving a smudge of butter on her cheek. "Uncle Marcus said the police wouldn't care. He said nobody cares about street kids. That’s why I couldn't go to the cops. They’d just give us back to him, or put Leo in a different home."
Julian walked over and sat on the stool next to her. He didn't crowd her, keeping a respectful distance.
"Maya, look at me," Julian commanded gently.
She turned her large, haunted brown eyes toward him.
"Your uncle was wrong," Julian said, his voice carrying the weight of a binding contract. "I care. And I promise you, as long as you are in this building, no one is ever going to hurt you or your brother again. Do you understand?"
Maya stared at him. She was searching for a lie, for the hidden trap that always existed in the adult world. But she found none. Julian Vance meant exactly what he said.
Just then, a sharp knock echoed from the private elevator doors. Julian’s personal assistant, a fiercely loyal woman named Sarah, stepped out carrying shopping bags.
"I got what you asked for, Mr. Vance," Sarah said, eyeing the two dirty children sitting in the pristine kitchen. She didn't ask questions; she knew better.
"Thank you, Sarah," Julian said. "Take Maya to the guest bathroom. Get her showered and into some clean clothes. Then, contact Dr. Aris. Have him come up here immediately with a pediatric kit."
"Is the baby sick?" Sarah asked, her professional veneer dropping as she looked at Leo.
May you like
"He’s malnourished," Julian said grimly. "And I want a full medical record on file before we make our next move."
As Sarah led Maya away, Julian walked to his study. He opened his laptop, pulled up his private investigator's contact, and typed a single message: Find everything you can on a man named Marcus who took in an 8-year-old girl named Maya and a baby boy six months ago. I want him ruined.
