Chapter 2
The heavy wooden door of the maternity suite clicked shut, sealing Brooke inside with her newborn daughter. The silence was immediate, though the faint, muffled sounds of Garrett arguing with the hospital staff bled through the walls.
Brooke lowered the phone, resting her head back against the white pillows. Her heart hammered against her ribs, but her hands remained perfectly still as she stroked her daughter’s cheek. She had known about Garrett’s affair with Kendra for seven months. She had known about their toddler, a secret child hidden in a lavish townhouse across the city. But she had also known the stipulations of the Hale-Vance corporate merger.
Garrett needed a legitimate male heir born of their marriage to unlock the majority voting shares of her family’s empire. A daughter meant nothing to his boardroom ambitions. He had intended to humiliate her today, to force a swift, devastating divorce while she was vulnerable. He hadn't known about the second heartbeat. Brooke had paid the private ultrasound technician highly to keep that detail off every medical record.
The door swung open again. This time, it wasn't Garrett.
Marcus Vance, Brooke’s father, stepped into the room. He was a towering figure in his late sixties, possessing a predatory grace that made billionaires tremble. He wore a charcoal overcoat over a bespoke gray suit, his silver hair immaculate. Behind him stood two massive men in dark suits, their eyes scanning the room with professional, lethal intent.
"Where is he?" Marcus asked, his voice a low rumble of impending violence.
"The corridor, I assume," Brooke said, shifting her weight. "He brought the mistress, Dad. And their child."
Marcus’s jaw tightened, the muscles ticking beneath his skin. He walked to the edge of the bed, looking down at his granddaughter. The terrifying aura around him softened for a fraction of a second. "She is beautiful, Brooke."
"She is a Vance," Brooke corrected softly. "The nurse is bringing her brother in a moment."
Marcus let out a slow, heavy breath, looking up at his daughter with profound respect. "You hid the boy from him. You knew he would try to seize the trust."
"He declared war the moment he walked into this hospital with Kendra," Brooke said, her brown eyes hardening. "He told me my daughter wouldn't carry his name."
"He is a dead man walking," Marcus stated, turning toward his security detail. "Clear this entire floor. I don't want Garrett Hale, his mistress, or his lawyers anywhere near this wing. If he resists, break his legs."
"Yes, sir," the lead guard nodded, slipping out the door.
"We need to move you, Brooke," Marcus said, pulling out a secure satellite phone. "Once Garrett realizes the boy exists, he will file emergency injunctions. He will claim you are unfit. He needs physical custody of that boy to control the board."
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"I'm not running, Dad," Brooke said, holding her daughter tighter.
"You aren't running," Marcus promised, his eyes narrowing. "You are repositioning. We are going to the fortress. And from there, we will dismantle Garrett Hale piece by piece."
