Chapter 2

Nicole froze for a moment, then her gaze shifted to the report lying on the floor.

I saw the brief flash of panic on her face, and before I could wonder what was going on, Nicole slapped me across the face. "Christopher isn't our biological grandson? How could you do something like this? Hanley's been good to you, hasn't he? How could you betray him?"

Kennard chimed in, his voice sharp and angry, "I should call your parents and ask them how they raised you. Aren't you ashamed of yourself? Doing things like this without fear of retribution?"

I fought to keep my emotions in check. "I'll say this one last time—Christopher is Hanley's son, and he's your grandson. If you don't believe me, we'll wait for Hanley to come home and sort this out. Worst case, let him and Christopher take the paternity test again!"

Kennard didn't respond and just glared at me.

Nicole, clearly agitated, snapped at me again. "You're acting so righteous after doing such disgraceful things? Even if Hanley comes back, he won't forgive you. And as for a paternity test, the truth is right here in front of you. If Christopher were really Hanley's son, how could he not be related to Kennard? Are you going to team up with the hospital to keep deceiving us?"

I opened my mouth to defend myself, but then Christopher came running out of the room. "Grandpa, Grandma, Mom, what's going on? Is dinner ready?"

Seeing him, Kennard seemed to lose all rationality. "Who are you calling Grandpa and Grandma? Don't you dare call us that! We don't even know who your real dad is. Get out of here!"

Christopher, confused by the sudden harshness, ran straight into my arms and started crying. He had no idea why the grandparents who usually adored him had suddenly turned cold.

His sobs only made Kennard more irritable. He grabbed Christopher and threw him onto the sofa, then grabbed him by the neck. "Why are you crying? Have I been too kind to you? Get out! Go find your real dad! Don't you dare stay in this house!"

Nicole stood frozen, as though lost in thought.

Seeing Christopher's face turning red, I rushed forward and yanked Kennard's hand off him, pulling Christopher behind me to shield him.

Tears welled up in my eyes. "We'll wait for Hanley to come back before we sort this out! He'll know whether Christopher's really his son."

Kennard finally let go, shooting me a cold look before turning and storming off to his room.

I carried Christopher back to our bedroom and quickly texted Hanley Pearce, telling him everything that had happened.

To my surprise, his response was brief. [I'm coming back now.]

Those cold words filled me with an ominous feeling I couldn't shake.

By the time Hanley walked through the door, it was nearly midnight.

I carefully tucked Christopher in, making sure he was asleep before quietly stepping out of the room.

As soon as I saw Hanley, all my pent-up frustration and hurt came pouring out. "Do you have any idea what your dad did to Christopher today? Before we got to sort things out, he nearly strangled Christopher and said he was going to throw us out. Aren't you going to do something? If I hadn't been there—"

"Are you done? Can't you let me rest for a second? I just got home."

The indifference in his eyes made my heart sink.

The paternity report still sat on the table, untouched, and Hanley didn't even seem interested in looking at it. It was like he had already accepted the result.

Nicole and Kennard soon appeared in the doorway.

"Hanley, you're finally home. If you hadn't shown up, this family would've fallen apart! Ask her whose child she gave birth to!" Nicole was the first to speak up.

Kennard stood there with a grim look on his face, glaring at me but saying nothing.

After what felt like an eternity, Hanley finally spoke. "Where's the child?"