Chapter 1

The officer was already looking at me impatiently. "The system doesn't lie."

I smiled as I said, "The system doesn't lie, but the people who input the data can."

The room went silent for a moment.

An older officer looked up at me.

I unlocked my phone and opened my Grab app's history. Then, I tapped open my company email and pulled out my travel confirmations from around the first of June, 2019. "This was my ride from the Neo International Convention Center to Central City International Airport in the morning that year. You're telling me there was a woman somewhere giving birth to my daughter on that date?"

The young officer frowned. "Sir, please calm down."

I said, "I want to see the original files."

"What original files?" The officer asked.

"The marriage registration, the birth registration, and the household registration documents. Since the system says I am divorced and have a daughter, there must be a marriage certificate, a divorce certificate, a birth certificate, proof of parentage, and other kinds of documents. Find them, and then I'll concede the girl is mine," I said.

The officers looked at one another. The older one stood up, his tone softening. "Alright, please have a seat. We'll verify this."

Ten minutes later, a scanned copy of a marriage registration appeared on the computer screen.

Groom's Name: Zephyr Evans

Somehow, my Social Security number was on there.

There was also a photo ID of me, but the one attached to the registration looked edited. The head was too large, the body too small, and the shoulders did not line up.

I stared at the photo, my palms slowly starting to sweat.

Bride's Name: Lindsay Davies

Address: Riverton

I had never heard that name, but the older officer's expression changed the moment he saw it. He lowered his voice and asked, "Lindsay? From the Davies family in Riverton?"

The younger officer whispered, "The Davies family in real estate and pharmaceuticals?"

An influential and wealthy family. My identity had been used to marry someone from such a powerful family.

The registration date was April 18, 2018, and the marriage certificate was registered at the county clerk's office in my hometown.

I opened my company's Facebook page and scrolled down to April 2018.

Oceanton.

Poseidon International Convention Center.

Closed bidding event.

For twelve days straight, I had location check-ins every day, from eight in the morning until one in the morning.

I pushed the screen toward the officers. "I was in Oceanton that day. These check-ins prove that I never went back to my hometown during this time."

This time, the officers did not say the system did not lie.

The older officer's face became stern, and he gave me a copy of the report. "Your identity information may have been stolen. We'll contact the Vital Records Office and Clerk's Office to verify this."

He glanced at the girl sitting on the bench, then looked at me. "She'll be placed with the Child Protective Service for now. You should cooperate with the investigation."

I nodded.

Then, the girl suddenly raised her head and called out timidly, "Daddy..."

The word was making my heart tremble, but it was not out of sympathy. Instead, it gave me goosebumps.

I took a step back.

I did not know whose child she was, but I knew she was not mine.

When I walked out of the police station, the night breeze hit my face. Only then did I realize my back was soaked completely.

I sat in my car and did not drive off right away. Instead, I called my mother, Jessie.