Chapter 5 - The Boy in the Cream Sweater
A soft, hesitant shuffle of sneakers echoed against the cold concrete.
Six-year-old Noah slowly stepped out from behind Olivia’s blue cardigan. He was still clutching his threadbare brown teddy bear against his chest with both hands, his knuckles pale.
The bright light from the guards' flashlights caught the side of Noah's face, casting soft highlights across his curly brown hair and his wide, innocent eyes.
Noah walked right into the open space between Olivia and Victor, stopping three feet away from the billionaire’s tailored leather shoes.
Victor slowly lowered his gaze from the wall photo down to the small boy standing at his knees.
The moment Victor’s eyes met Noah’s, the billionaire stopped breathing entirely.
The resemblance was not subtle; it was terrifyingly absolute. Noah carried the exact same dark, almond-shaped eyes, the exact same pronounced jawline, and the exact same small, arched scar just above his left eyebrow that Victor Moretti had carried since his own childhood.
Victor stared at the child as if he were looking into a mirror across thirty-seven years of time.
Noah’s dark eyes began to fill with large, silent tears that spilled over his pale cheeks. His small chest heaved in his cream sweater as he looked up at the towering man in the black suit.
Noah looked up at Victor’s face. Then he turned his small head to look at the faded photograph of the radiant woman hanging on the brick wall. Then he slowly looked back up into Victor’s eyes.
Noah raised his tiny, shaking finger, pointing it directly at Victor’s face.
"Daddy...?" Noah whispered softly.
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The entire basement went dead, suffocatingly silent.
The two security guards at the door exchanged a wide-eyed, shocked glance, holding their breath. Daniel, Lucas, and the twins froze in place. Olivia closed her eyes tightly, tears finally escaping her lashes and dripping onto her blue cardigan.
