Chapter 2 — The Truth Money Couldn’t Bury
Chapter 2 — The Truth Money Couldn’t Bury
The hearing resumed, but nothing about it was normal anymore.
Damian barely spoke. Every few seconds, his eyes drifted back to Rose like he was trying to solve a problem that didn’t belong in his world of numbers and contracts.
When my lawyer began speaking—something about contested divorce terms, asset division, prenup enforcement—Damian suddenly interrupted.
“I want a DNA test.”
His voice was sharp again. Controlled. Rebuilding itself.
That version of him I used to know.
The version that believed everything could be solved with proof and power.
I almost smiled.
“You can have one,” I said calmly. “But it won’t change anything.”
His eyes narrowed. “It changes everything.”
“No,” I replied softly. “It only confirms what you already failed to see.”
The judge called for order, but Damian wasn’t listening anymore.
He stepped away from the table and walked toward me.
Security shifted instantly, but I didn’t move.
He stopped a few feet away.
Close enough now that Rose could feel him.
She blinked awake.
And looked at him.
Really looked.
No fear. No recognition. Just quiet curiosity—the kind only children have before the world teaches them otherwise.
Damian’s breath caught.
“What’s her name?” he asked.
“Rose.”
Something broke behind his eyes at that.
Not anger.
Not denial.
Something far more dangerous.
Regret.
For the first time since I walked in, his voice dropped completely.
“You never told me,” he said.
“You never stayed long enough to listen,” I replied.
That hit harder than anything else.
He looked down at his daughter again, like he was trying to decide whether he had the right to feel anything at all.
And then, quietly:
“I didn’t know.”
“I know,” I said.
May you like
A pause.
Then I added, “But I did.”
