Chapter 2: The Illusion of Control
Three days later, I was discharged from the hospital. I didn't return to the cramped apartment I had shared with Derek. Instead, a sleek, armored black Maybach was waiting at the curb, driven by the silent, broad-shouldered man who had stood behind Matteo in the hospital hallway.
"Mr. Vance requested that you and the baby be brought to the estate in Gold Coast, Ms. Emma," the driver, Marcus, said respectfully as he held the door open for me.
Lily was strapped securely into a brand-new, top-of-the-line infant car seat. As the car cut through the Chicago traffic, I stared out the window, wondering if I had traded one nightmare for another. Matteo Vance was a ghost story in this city—a billionaire shipping mogul whose family controlled the docks, the unions, and the private security sectors. He was a man who handled problems that the police couldn't touch.
When we arrived at the massive, iron-gated mansion overlooking Lake Michigan, the doors were opened by a staff that treated me like royalty. Matteo was waiting in the grand library, dressed in a casual black cashmere sweater, a glass of dark amber liquid in his hand.
"You look exhausted, Emma," Matteo said, putting his glass down and walking over to gently take the heavy car seat from my hand. "The nursery is upstairs. It has been fully stocked by the city's best pediatric consultants."
"Why are you doing this, Matteo?" I asked, stopping him before he could carry her up. "You don't know me. You don't owe me anything. My ex is a rising executive at Morris Logistics. He’s going to sue for fraud if he finds out a Vance is on that certificate."
Matteo let out a short, dangerous laugh. "Let him try. Derek Morrison’s company relies entirely on my shipping berths to move his cargo. If I close my ports, his little empire collapses by Friday afternoon."
He stepped closer, his silver-gray eyes locking onto mine with an intensity that made my heart race.
"I didn't do this just to spite him, Emma. Fourteen years ago, my father did the exact same thing to my mother. He demanded a test, humiliated her, and left her in a ward just like that one. I swore that if I ever saw a coward do that to a woman again, I would strip him of everything he holds dear. Consider me your daughter's shield."
Before I could answer, my phone buzzed violently in my pocket. I pulled it out to see a barrage of frantic text messages from Derek.
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Derek: What the hell did you do, Emma?! My HR department just notified me that my corporate health insurance plan was overwritten because someone filed a primary birth declaration for the baby. Who the hell signed it?!
Matteo glanced down at the screen, a slow, predatory smile spreading across his lips. "Give me the phone," he murmured.
