Chapter 1 - The Guardian
The living room was so quiet I could hear the snow hitting the windowpanes.
Everyone stared at the baby’s passport in the stranger’s trembling hand.
I looked at my father, whose face had turned the color of ash.
"What does she mean, Arthur?" my mother shrieked, suddenly finding her voice.
The police officers exchanged confused glances before stepping closer to David.
"Sir, we need you to put your hands behind your back," the taller officer commanded.
David didn't fight them as the cold metal cuffs clicked around his wrists.
He just kept staring at the woman with the baby, his charming mask finally slipping.
"Her name is Elena," David spat, his voice dripping with venom.
"She is a liar and a completely unstable woman."
Elena ignored him and walked directly over to my father.
"You signed the papers, Arthur," she said, her voice shaking with rage.
"You helped him hide his assets, and in return, he made you the legal guardian of my son so I couldn't get custody."
My father collapsed onto the sofa, burying his face in his hands.
"I didn't know what I was signing," my father sobbed.
"David told me it was a corporate liability waiver for the loan."
I felt physically sick to my stomach.
My father had literally signed away another woman's child to save his failing business.
I pulled my children, Caleb and Mia, tightly against my sides.
"Get him out of my house," I told the officers, pointing at David.
As they dragged David through the front door, he looked over his shoulder at my mother.
"Don't say a word, Helen," David warned her.
May you like
My mother collapsed onto the floor, weeping hysterically.
The Christmas tree lights blinked cheerfully in the background, a sickening contrast to the destruction of my family.
