CHAPTER 10 — THE DNA LIE
Arthur stared at the page.
The words refused to make sense.
Not because he believed them.
Because for one terrifying second...
He wondered if Charles had spent years preparing this exact moment.
The moment designed to break him.
Daniel arrived five minutes later.
He saw Arthur holding the page.
“What happened?”
Arthur handed it over.
Daniel read it.
His expression changed.
Emily saw his face.
“What does it say?”
No one answered.
She took the paper.
The moment she read it...
She went pale.
“No.”
Arthur looked at her.
“You knew?”
Emily immediately shook her head.
“No.”
“Then why are you afraid?”
“Because Charles knows exactly what to attack.”
Arthur looked away.
The words hurt.
Not because they were true.
Because they were cruel enough to be possible.
James arrived with new information.
“Victoria escaped through an underground passage.”
“Where?”
“Connected to the old hospital tunnels.”
Daniel looked at Arthur.
“She planned the escape before you arrived.”
Arthur ignored that.
“Find out about the document.”
James took it carefully.
“I’ll send it for analysis.”
“No.”
Everyone looked at Arthur.
“DNA test.”
Emily’s face changed.
Arthur immediately regretted the pain in her eyes.
But he needed certainty.
Not because he doubted Lily.
Because Charles had built an empire on doubt.
“I need to know the truth.”
Emily nodded slowly.
Her voice was barely audible.
“I understand.”
The test results came back twelve hours later.
The entire family waited in the private medical office.
Arthur.
Emily.
Daniel.
James.
Lily sat outside with Maria.
No one spoke.
The doctor entered.
A folder in his hand.
“Mr. Sterling.”
Arthur stood.
“What did you find?”
The doctor looked at the papers.
Then at Emily.
“The sample comparison is complete.”
Arthur held his breath.
“The probability that you are Lily’s biological father is…”
A pause.
“99.9998 percent.”
Arthur closed his eyes.
The room exhaled.
Emily covered her mouth.
Daniel looked relieved.
James took the paper.
“The document was fake.”
The doctor nodded.
“A very good fake.”
Arthur looked at Emily.
“I’m sorry.”
She looked down.
“For doubting?”
“For making you feel I doubted you.”
Emily stepped closer.
“You needed the truth.”
Arthur took her hand.
“But I should have known.”
“No.”
She shook her head.
“Charles wanted you to question everything.”
A nurse entered.
“Doctor.”
She handed him another envelope.
“This was delivered with the test documents.”
Arthur opened it.
A photograph fell out.
It showed Charles.
Victoria.
And a man Arthur had never seen before.
Standing outside a courthouse.
On the back:
The DNA test was only the beginning.
Ask who paid for the original one.
Daniel looked at the photograph.
His face changed.
“I know that man.”
“Who?”
Daniel took a breath.
“Judge Michael Rowan.”
James frowned.
“The family court judge?”
Daniel nodded.
“The same judge who approved emergency guardianship requests.”
Arthur understood.
Charles had planned everything through the legal system.
The attack on Lily.
The false guardianship.
The fake DNA.
The missing mother.
Every piece connected.
Then Lily screamed from the hallway.
Everyone rushed outside.
Maria was holding her.
The child was pointing at the television.
A news report was playing.
A reporter stood outside the Sterling mansion.
“Breaking news. Billionaire Arthur Sterling is facing allegations of child endangerment after reports claim his former fiancée was attacked—”
Arthur froze.
The screen showed footage of him carrying Lily from the pool.
But edited.
The angle made it look like he had pulled her from the water after she fell because of neglect.
The reporter continued:
“Sources claim Sterling has a history of instability following the disappearance of his wife…”
Emily stared.
“They’re rewriting everything.”
Arthur understood.
Charles had moved to the final stage.
Destroy Arthur’s reputation.
Remove him legally.
Then take Lily.
The phone rang.
Judge Rowan.
Arthur answered.
The judge’s voice was cold.
“Mr. Sterling.”
“What do you want?”
“I have received evidence suggesting your household is unsafe for a child.”
Arthur’s face hardened.
“From who?”
“From multiple witnesses.”
“Victoria.”
“And others.”
Arthur looked toward Lily.
The judge continued.
“I am issuing an emergency custody review.”
Emily grabbed his arm.
“No.”
“When?”
“Tomorrow morning.”
The call ended.
Arthur stared at the phone.
James spoke quietly.
“They’re coming for Lily legally.”
Daniel nodded.
“Charles knows he cannot beat you with force.”
Arthur looked at the television.
The reporter continued attacking his name.
“He is trying to make the world believe you are the danger.”
Arthur turned toward Lily.
She held Teddy.
The same teddy that had recorded Victoria’s confession.
The same teddy that had survived everything.
Arthur knelt.
“Sweetheart.”
She looked at him.
“Are they taking me away?”
His heart broke.
“No.”
“But they always say that.”
Arthur held her hand.
“Listen to me.”
“You are not a problem.”
“You are not a burden.”
“You are my daughter.”
Lily nodded.
But Arthur saw the fear.
The fear Victoria had planted.
The fear Charles had nurtured.
That night, Arthur sat alone in Emily’s studio.
He reviewed every file.
Every message.
Every lie.
Then he noticed something.
The fake DNA document.
The guardianship papers.
The edited video.
They all came from the same source.
A law firm.
Not Charles’s.
Not Victoria’s.
Someone else.
He opened the metadata.
The creator name appeared.
EVELYN STERLING.
Arthur froze.
He knew that name.
His mother.
Dead for fifteen years.
Impossible.
Then another file appeared.
A hidden recording.
Arthur pressed Play.
An older woman’s voice filled the room.
His mother.
“Arthur, if you are hearing this…”
He stopped breathing.
“Then the Sterling family has finally come for you.”
The recording continued.
“I spent my life protecting you from your father’s mistakes.”
A pause.
“But there is something you need to know.”
Arthur leaned closer.
“The person you trust most…”
The voice trembled.
“May be the person who destroyed everything.”
The recording ended.
Arthur sat frozen.
Because one question remained.
May you like
Who had his mother been warning him about?
End of Chapter 10
