Chapter 2 - The Bloodline Verified
I knelt beside the coffee table, eye level with the little girl. Emma looked up from her sketchbook, offering me a shy smile. Up close, the resemblance was heartbreaking. The slight cleft in her chin, the high cheekbones, and those piercing, storm-gray eyes.
"Mateo," I called out without breaking eye contact with my niece. "Bring Dr. Reyes up here now."
Within twenty minutes, my trusted family physician arrived with an expedited rapid-DNA kit. With a gentle swab of Emma's cheek and a drop of my own blood, the machine went to work in silence.
Forty-five minutes later, the digital readout flashed green on the tablet screen.
Kinship Probability: 99.8%. Paternal Niece.
I closed my eyes as a heavy, crushing weight settled onto my chest. Luca was truly gone, but his child was sitting right in front of me. The boy I had failed to save thirteen years ago had sent his daughter back to me from the grave.
"Why today, Clara?" I asked, looking up. "Why walk up to my building today?"
Clara reached into her tote bag and pulled out a battered, leather-bound journal. "Because three days ago, someone broke into my apartment. They didn't steal money or electronics. They searched my drawers and left a black envelope on my pillow."
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She handed the envelope to me. Inside was a single printed photograph—a high-angle surveillance shot of Clara and Emma walking through the park near their home, with a red cross drawn over Emma's face.
"They found us, Sebastian," Clara choked back a sob. "I had nowhere else to run."
