Chapter 7

*Margaret's POV*

The loud dial tone echoed in my ear.

My hands shook so badly that I almost dropped my phone onto the cold tile floor. My chest felt tight, and I could barely breathe.

"If you keep digging into the Vance child, your baby won't be the only thing that ended up six feet under six years ago."

The voice had sounded changed, cold, and unnatural.

Someone knew.

Someone had seen me walk into that private lab downtown. Or maybe someone inside this mansion was watching everything I did.

My mind raced.

Dr. Harrison? A corrupt security guard? The rich people who had helped Victoria take my baby?

Fear tightened around my throat.

I closed my eyes and took three shaky breaths, trying to calm myself down. I couldn't stay in the dark kitchen. I needed to get back to my room, lock the door, and figure out what to do next.

I stepped backward out of the kitchen, my vision still blurry from the panic.

Because I wasn't looking behind me, my heel caught the edge of the hallway rug.

I lost my balance.

A sharp gasp escaped my lips as I fell backward, ready to hit the hard marble floor.

But I never did.

Two strong arms caught me.

I crashed into a warm, solid chest. The smell of Cologne, fresh soap, and skin filled my senses. I grabbed the bare shoulders to steady myself, my hands sliding over the warm skin.

I looked up—and stopped breathing.

It was Alexander.

He wasn't wearing his usual suit. He had on dark grey sweatpants, sitting low on his hips, with the top of his boxers showing underneath. His was shirtless, his chest broad and muscular, and his body was warm against mine.

As he caught me, his right hand landed around my waist, his fingers resting against my hip and close to my lower back. His left arm held me firmly against him.

I could barely breathe.

My heart was already racing from the phone call, and now it was beating even faster.

"Careful," Alexander said, his voice deep and rough from sleep.

His eyes locked onto mine. His face tightened when he noticed how fast I was breathing.

"Margaret?" he asked softly, looking at my trembling lips before meeting my eyes again. "What are you doing walking around in the dark? You're shaking."

"I... I was just—"

My voice came out weak.

I was caught between the fear from the phone call and the strange warmth of the man holding me.

His hand on my hip sent a strange shiver through me.

Before I could pull away, a loud THUD came from the hallway.

A plastic doll hit the floor just a few feet away from us and bounced against the wall.

We both froze.

Jasmine stood at the top of the stairs.

She was wearing green pyjamas and holding a small plastic cup in one hand. Her other hand was still raised from throwing the doll.

Her little face was full of anger.

Her eyes moved from Alexander's bare chest to his hand around my waist, then up to my face.

"I knew it!" Jasmine screamed. "You're a disgusting snake! You're trying to take my mommy's place! Get your hands off my daddy!"

"Jasmine!" Alexander snapped.

He immediately let go of me and stepped back.

"Watch your tone!"

"No!" she shouted

Tears of anger rolled down her cheeks as she stomped her foot.

"I hate her! She went into Mommy's room today, and now she's touching you! I want her gone! Send her away!"

She slammed her cup onto the stair railing and ran upstairs.

A second later, her bedroom door slammed shut.

Silence filled the hallway again.

I stood there, still feeling the warmth of Alexander's hands on my skin, my heart racing.

Alexander rubbed his face and let out a long breath.

When he looked at me again, the concern in his eyes was gone. His face had become cold, although his chest was still rising and falling quickly.

"Go to your room, Margaret," he said quietly. "And watch where you're walking next time."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Vance," I whispered.

I lowered my head and hurried past him, taking the back stairs to the nanny quarters.

I didn't sleep that night.

I lay on my small bed in the dark, holding the $250,000 hospital receipt tightly in my hand while staring at the ceiling.

My mind wouldn't stop.

The changed voice from the phone call kept playing in my head. Someone was watching me. Someone powerful enough to kill me if I went too far.

And Jasmine's hatred had become even worse.

She thought I was trying to get close to her father when all I wanted was to find my biological child and tell her the truth.

And Alexander...

The memory of his bare chest against mine and his hand around my waist kept coming back to me.

I hated that it made my face feel hot.

__

By Saturday morning, I knew I couldn't stay inside those walls another hour.

I needed to talk to the only person who knew my whole story. The only person I trusted.

Leo.

At 7:00 AM, I went to the house manager and asked for three hours off because of a personal emergency. After everything that happened the night before, he agreed without much trouble.

I hurried out through the large gates of the Vance estate and took a public bus across the city to Leo's apartment.

I barely knocked before I started banging on the wooden door.

A few seconds later, I heard the locks opening.

The door swung open, and Leo stood there in an oversized T-shirt with messy hair.

"Margaret?" he groaned, rubbing his eyes. "It's 7:30 on a Saturday morning. What are you doing here?"

Before I could answer, a tall, handsome man with blonde hair walked out of Leo's kitchen carrying two mugs of coffee. He was wearing only grey sweatpants.

"Babe, who is it?" the man asked.

Leo looked annoyed as he turned toward him.

"Hey, Julian, sweetie... can you take your coffee back into the bedroom for a minute? My friend is having some kind of breakdown."

Julian raised an eyebrow and gave me a small, sympathetic smile before walking back into the bedroom and closing the door.

Leo turned back to me, grabbed my arm, and pulled me inside.

"Okay, spill. This better be life or death, Margaret. Julian and I had plans this morning, and you just showed up like a ghost."

"It is life or death, Leo," I said, my voice breaking as everything I had been holding inside finally came out.

I pulled him toward the small kitchen table and took the old hospital receipt from my pocket.

I placed it on the table and flattened it out.

"Look at this."

My hands were shaking as I pointed at the bottom.

"Jasmine... the little girl I'm taking care of. She has the exact same crescent birthmark on her ankle as my baby. The exact same spot, Leo! And look at this receipt I found in the late wife's room. Victoria Vance paid Dr. Harrison two hundred and fifty thousand dollars during the exact same week I gave birth!"

Leo slowly sat down and pulled the receipt closer.

He read it, and the annoyed look on his face changed to concern. But he still looked unsure.

"Margaret..." he said carefully. "This is just an old hospital receipt. Rich people pay doctors privately for all kinds of things."

"No!" I said, leaning across the table. "Dr. Harrison told me my baby was dead! He took her! He sold her to Victoria Vance!"

My voice shook.

"And last night, Leo... I got a call from an unknown number. The voice was changed. He told me that if I kept looking into the child, I'd end up six feet under just like my baby!"

Leo sighed and reached across the table, taking both of my shaking hands.

"Margaret, listen to me."

He looked straight into my eyes.

"You went through something terrible six years ago when you lost Marcus and the baby. I was there. I watched you fall apart. But you're living in a stressful house right now with a billionaire who lost his wife. You're tired. You're seeing connections because you want your daughter to be alive."

"I am not crazy!" I cried, pulling my hands away. "The birthmark, Leo! How do you explain the birthmark?"

"Birthmarks happen!" Leo argued gently. "Crescent shapes aren't some kind of proof, Margaret. And that phone call could have been a prank, a wrong number, or even someone from the lab trying to scare you because they saw how desperate you were."

He shook his head.

"If you start accusing one of the most powerful billionaires in the country of buying a stolen child, he could destroy you. He could have you locked up. Or worse."

I stared at my best friend.

My heart sank.

He didn't believe me.

Even with the receipt and the phone call, he still thought I was just a grieving woman who wanted to believe her daughter was alive.

"I know what I saw, Leo," I whispered.

I took the receipt and put it back into my pocket before standing.

"I know my child."

"Margaret, wait," Leo said, stepping toward me. "Don't just leave. Let's talk about this properly."

"I have to get back," I said quietly, backing toward the door. "Thanks for letting me come here."

The sun was already going down by the time I reached the wealthy neighborhood around the Vance estate.

The long road leading to the large gates was quiet, covered by tall oak trees and high walls.

My feet felt heavy as I walked.

I felt completely alone.

Leo didn't believe me. The lab test had failed. Jasmine hated me.

And someone dangerous was watching me.

But when I looked toward the mansion gates, I knew I couldn't give up.

My daughter was behind those gates.

Suddenly, the sound of tires screeching broke through the quiet evening.

A black SUV came speeding around the corner and swerved onto the curb right in front of me.

It blocked my path.

Before I could scream or move, both side doors flew open.

Two large men wearing black hoodies and dark masks jumped out.

"Get her!" one of them shouted.

I turned to run.

But strong arms grabbed me from behind and lifted me off the ground.

A hand pressed a chemical-smelling cloth over my nose and mouth.

"MMMPH!"

I kicked and struggled, trying to pull myself free.

"Hold her still!" the second man shouted, grabbing my legs and pushing me into the back seat of the SUV.

The strange smell filled my lungs.

My body quickly became weak.

The road began to spin.

The last thing I heard was the car doors slamming shut before everything went black.