Chapter 9 - SURROGATE TRUTH
Damian picked up the paper from the floor. It was an official state birth certificate from a private clinic in Switzerland, stamped with the Volkov seal.
Mother: Elena Volkov.
Father: Damian Volkov.
Surrogate / Gestational Carrier: Mara Reyes.
Damian looked up, his jaw set like iron. "You used your own sister to carry my child without her knowledge?"
"She knew back then," Elena said, her eyes flashing with cold arrogance. "Mara agreed to everything. She took ten million dollars to give birth to Lila and disappear. But then the crash happened, she lost her memory, and Viktor hid her away like a bargaining chip."
"That's a lie!" Mara screamed, tears spilling down her fair cheeks. "I would never sell a child! I raised Lila! I took care of her when she lost her hearing! Where were you when she was sick? Where were you for four years?"
"I was running our empire while my husband was playing mourning widow," Elena snapped, her eyes narrowing at Damian. "You thought Viktor was the villain, Damian? Viktor was working for me. Every move he made, every bribe he paid, every drop of poison in your medicine—he did it on my orders."
Marco’s finger tightened on the trigger of his pistol. "Give the word, Boss. I'll drop her right now."
"You shoot me, Marco, and the bomb under this mansion detonates in sixty seconds," Elena said calmly, holding up a small black detonator in her gloved right hand. A tiny red light was pulsing on top of it.
Damian didn't flinch. He took one step toward his wife. "You won't blow up this house, Elena. The Volkov ledgers are stored in the server room down here. Without them, you have zero leverage over the family council."
"I don't need the ledgers anymore," Elena smiled thinly. "I already transferred the master encryption keys to the Moretti syndicate twenty minutes ago. My family is taking back everything you stole from us."
Lila suddenly tapped Mara’s shoulder twice. She pointed at Elena’s hand—not at the detonator, but at the heavy silver ring on Elena’s middle finger.
Mara looked closer. Engraved on the ring was the same silver hawk emblem as the ring they found in the library safe.
"That's not Elena," Lila whispered softly in her sweet, broken speech.
Damian heard the child's words. His eyes darted from the woman’s face down to her hand.
May you like
"What did you say, Lila?" Damian asked without breaking eye contact with the woman.
Lila signed clearly with both hands: Auntie has scar on cheek. This lady no scar.
