Chapter 7 - The Price of a Father's Love
# Chapter 7 - The Price of a Father's Love
"With what?" Leo demanded.
Adrian Cross smiled as though they were discussing a business arrangement rather than the fate of a kidnapped child.
"With your cooperation, Mr. Vale. I need you to become the man the court believed you were five years ago."
Leo stared at him.
"A criminal?"
"A businessman willing to make difficult decisions."
"You destroyed my life."
Adrian adjusted the cuffs of his expensive charcoal suit.
"Your life was already becoming a problem. I simply found a way to manage it."
Behind him, three black SUVs blocked the loading bay. Armed men stood beside the vehicles, their attention fixed on Leo and Evelyn.
The hard drive felt cold and heavy in Leo's hand.
Inside it might be the evidence that could clear his name.
It might also contain the only information capable of leading him to Thomas.
His second son.
A child he had never held.
A child whose death certificate had been filed six years earlier.
And now Adrian wanted him to surrender everything.
"What exactly do you want me to do?" Leo asked.
Adrian glanced at the hard drive.
"First, you'll return that to me."
"And then?"
"You'll sign several documents."
Leo gave a bitter laugh.
"That sounds familiar."
Adrian's expression didn't change.
"These documents will establish that the financial transfers associated with Mercer & Vale were authorized by you."
"They weren't."
"Truth is often less useful than documentation."
Leo felt his anger rising.
"You already sent me to prison for those transfers."
"Yes. Unfortunately, your release creates certain complications."
"What complications?"
Adrian stepped closer.
"Daniel began asking questions before he died. He contacted people who shouldn't have known about our arrangements. Some of those people are now talking to investigators."
Leo's heart quickened.
"Investigators?"
"Federal investigators."
For the first time that morning, Leo felt a faint spark of hope.
Someone outside Adrian's organization was looking into the truth.
Someone might already know that the fraud case had been fabricated.
Adrian noticed the change in his expression.
"Don't get excited. They have suspicions, not proof."
Leo raised the hard drive slightly.
"Then I suppose this matters."
Adrian's smile disappeared.
"More than you understand."
Evelyn moved closer to Leo.
"Don't give it to him."
Adrian turned toward her.
"You're becoming tiresome."
She ignored him.
"Leo, once he has the evidence, he won't need us anymore."
Leo looked at his wife.
Only minutes earlier, she had confessed to helping Adrian's people enter his office and fabricate the case that destroyed his life.
He wanted to hate her.
Part of him did.
But she was also the woman who had given birth to his children, the woman who had apparently spent years trapped inside a conspiracy she had helped create.
He could not decide whether she deserved forgiveness.
He only knew that Toby and Thomas deserved protection.
"Show me my son again," Leo said.
Adrian sighed.
"You've already seen him."
"Show me."
"Mr. Vale—"
"If you want the drive, I want to know he's alive."
Adrian studied him for several seconds.
Then nodded to one of his men.
The man raised a tablet.
A video connection opened.
Thomas appeared again.
He was sitting at a small wooden table, drawing with a blue crayon.
His brown hair fell across his forehead.
His small shoulders were hunched.
Leo's chest tightened painfully.
"Thomas?"
The boy looked up.
His expression was cautious.
"Who are you?"
Leo couldn't speak.
For six years, he had believed he had one son.
Now he was looking at another boy with the same eyes, the same face, and the same hesitant way of tilting his head.
"I'm..." Leo swallowed. "I'm your father."
Thomas stared at the screen.
Then shook his head.
"No."
Leo felt his heart break.
"It's true."
"My father is Dr. Price."
Evelyn gasped.
Leo turned toward Adrian.
"What?"
Adrian's expression remained calm.
"Children require stability. Nathaniel provided it."
Leo looked back at the screen.
"Thomas, listen to me—"
The boy moved away from the tablet.
"Dr. Price said my real father didn't want me."
Leo felt something inside him fracture.
"No, sweetheart. That's not true."
Thomas looked uncertain.
"He said you gave me away."
Leo took an involuntary step forward.
"I didn't even know you were alive."
The boy's eyes filled with tears.
"Then why didn't you come?"
Leo opened his mouth.
No words came.
How could he explain prison to a six-year-old child?
How could he explain forged documents, secret medical transfers, and a father who had been robbed of the chance to know his son?
Adrian reached toward the tablet.
"That's enough."
"Wait!" Leo shouted.
But the screen went dark.
The connection ended.
Leo stared at the blank display.
Adrian lowered his hand.
"Now you understand why cooperation is necessary."
Leo looked at him.
"No."
Adrian raised an eyebrow.
"No?"
"I understand that you've spent six years lying to a child."
The older man's expression hardened.
"Be careful."
Leo stepped closer.
"You took my son. You made him believe I abandoned him. And now you expect me to trust you?"
Adrian's voice became cold.
"I expect you to recognize that I control whether you ever see him again."
A sharp metallic crash echoed from the maintenance stairwell behind them.
Everyone turned.
One of Adrian's guards raised his weapon.
Another moved toward the entrance.
Adrian frowned.
"What was that?"
The guard spoke into his radio.
No response.
He tried again.
Static crackled.
Leo felt a flicker of suspicion.
Something was happening inside the building.
Perhaps Officer Grant's backup had arrived.
Perhaps the police had finally found the storage facility.
But Adrian's men did not look like people preparing to surrender.
They looked like people preparing for a fight.
Adrian turned back toward Leo.
"Give me the drive."
Leo tightened his grip.
"Release Thomas."
"That wasn't our agreement."
"We don't have an agreement."
Adrian stared at him.
Then slowly smiled.
"You sound exactly like Daniel."
Leo felt his stomach tighten.
"Daniel tried to stop you."
"Daniel tried to become a hero."
"And you killed him."
Adrian's expression changed.
For the first time, genuine anger appeared in his eyes.
"Daniel was my brother."
"You had a strange way of showing it."
Adrian stepped forward.
"Daniel betrayed our family."
Leo stared at him.
"By exposing your crimes?"
"By threatening to destroy everything our father built."
Leo frowned.
"Your father?"
Adrian hesitated.
Then looked away.
A small mistake.
But Leo noticed it.
"Who was your father?"
Adrian's expression became unreadable.
"Someone you never knew."
"Then why does he matter?"
Adrian leaned closer.
"Because Mercer & Vale was never just a construction company."
Leo felt a chill.
"What was it?"
"A means of moving money, acquiring properties, and keeping certain operations beyond public scrutiny."
"The medical program?"
Adrian smiled faintly.
"Among other things."
Leo looked at the hard drive.
"Project Second Life."
Adrian's smile vanished.
"Where did you hear that name?"
Leo raised the drive.
"Your people weren't very careful."
For a moment, Adrian looked genuinely unsettled.
Then he recovered.
"Whatever you think you've discovered, you're missing most of the story."
"Then tell me."
Adrian looked toward Evelyn.
"Ask your wife."
Leo turned.
Evelyn's face had gone white.
"What does he mean?"
She shook her head.
"Leo, don't listen to him."
Adrian laughed softly.
"She still hasn't told you why Thomas was selected."
Leo stared at Evelyn.
"Selected?"
She closed her eyes.
Adrian continued.
"Thomas wasn't transferred because he was sick."
Leo felt the air leave his lungs.
"What?"
"The respiratory condition was invented."
Evelyn began crying.
"Stop."
Adrian ignored her.
"Both boys were healthy."
Leo stared at him.
"Then why take one?"
Adrian looked directly into his eyes.
"Because the program required genetically identical subjects raised in different environments."
The words seemed to echo through the loading bay.
Leo struggled to understand.
"Identical twins?"
Adrian nodded.
"One raised in an ordinary family. The other raised under controlled conditions."
Leo felt sick.
"You experimented on my children?"
Adrian's expression remained calm.
"The research began before they were born."
Evelyn covered her mouth.
Leo looked at her.
"You knew?"
She shook her head desperately.
"Not what they were doing."
"But you signed the papers."
"I thought Thomas was dying!"
Adrian smiled.
"That's what we told her."
Leo's hands trembled.
The truth was worse than anything he had imagined.
Thomas had not been taken because he needed medical treatment.
He had been taken because someone wanted to study him.
And Toby had been left behind as a comparison.
Two boys.
Two lives.
One family deliberately torn apart.
Leo looked at Adrian with a hatred so intense it frightened him.
"You treated my sons like laboratory animals."
Adrian's expression hardened.
"Careful, Mr. Vale. Emotional outbursts won't help Thomas."
Leo took a step forward.
Evelyn grabbed his arm.
"Leo, don't."
He stopped.
Not because he feared Adrian.
Because Toby was waiting for him.
Because Thomas was still somewhere beyond his reach.
And because losing control now could cost both boys their lives.
A radio crackled beside the nearest SUV.
One of the guards answered.
His expression changed.
He hurried toward Adrian.
"Sir."
Adrian turned.
"What?"
"We have a problem."
"What kind?"
The guard glanced at Leo.
"Police vehicles approaching from the southern access road."
Leo's heart quickened.
Officer Grant.
The backup.
Someone had come.
Adrian looked toward the distant entrance.
"How many?"
"At least four."
"Local police?"
"Unknown."
Adrian's jaw tightened.
He turned toward Leo.
"You brought them."
Leo said nothing.
Adrian stepped closer.
"I told you to come alone."
"I did."
"Then how did they find us?"
Leo looked at him.
"Maybe you're not as untouchable as you think."
Adrian's face darkened.
He nodded to the guard.
The man immediately raised his weapon toward Evelyn.
Leo moved instinctively.
"Don't!"
Adrian lifted one hand.
The guard stopped.
"Give me the drive," Adrian said quietly, "or your wife dies."
Leo looked at Evelyn.
Her face was pale.
Her wounded shoulder trembled.
She had betrayed him.
She had lied to him.
But he could not watch her die.
He slowly extended the hard drive.
Adrian reached for it.
Then Leo heard a voice behind him.
"Don't give him anything."
Everyone turned.
Samuel Reed stood at the entrance to the loading bay.
His brown jacket was stained with dust.
A narrow cut marked his forehead.
In his right hand, he held a small black pistol.
Leo stared at him.
"Samuel?"
The older man nodded.
"Hello, Leo."
Adrian's face twisted with disbelief.
"You're supposed to be dead."
Samuel smiled faintly.
"So are several other people in your records."
Adrian's guards raised their weapons.
Samuel didn't flinch.
"Put them down."
Adrian laughed.
"You're outnumbered."
"Probably."
Samuel glanced toward the ceiling.
"But I'm not alone."
A second later, a deafening explosion shook the building.
The lights went out.
Glass shattered.
Smoke poured through the upper windows.
Someone shouted.
A guard fired blindly.
Leo grabbed Evelyn and pulled her behind a concrete pillar.
Bullets struck the wall.
Adrian's men scattered.
Samuel disappeared into the smoke.
Leo could barely see.
His ears rang.
Evelyn clutched his arm.
"Leo!"
He turned.
Blood was spreading across her bandage again.
"We have to get out," she gasped.
Leo looked toward the loading bay entrance.
Through the smoke, he saw men moving between the SUVs.
Some wore tactical gear.
Others carried rifles.
He couldn't tell which side they were on.
Then a voice boomed through a loudspeaker.
"Federal agents! Drop your weapons!"
Leo froze.
Federal agents.
Adrian's expression changed instantly.
He turned toward his nearest guard.
"Get the vehicles moving!"
But before anyone could obey, the first SUV's windshield shattered.
A guard collapsed behind the hood.
Another threw down his weapon.
The loading bay erupted into chaos.
Leo pulled Evelyn toward the maintenance stairwell.
Then a hand grabbed his shoulder.
He spun.
Samuel Reed stood behind him.
"Come with me."
Leo stared at him.
"You shot at us!"
Samuel's expression tightened.
"I shot at Nathaniel."
"You nearly killed my wife!"
"I was trying to stop him from taking the drive."
Leo felt his anger surge.
"You used my son to carry tracking devices!"
Samuel looked genuinely pained.
"One of those devices was mine. The other was planted by Adrian's people."
"And you didn't think to tell me?"
"There wasn't time."
Leo stepped closer.
"You've had six years."
Samuel said nothing.
The accusation hung between them.
Then Samuel reached into his jacket.
Leo stiffened.
But the older man withdrew a photograph.
He pressed it into Leo's hand.
"Look."
Leo glanced down.
The photograph showed two little boys standing beside a garden fence.
Both looked about four years old.
One wore a green sweater.
The other wore a blue jacket.
They were identical.
Toby.
Thomas.
Leo's breath caught.
"Where was this taken?"
Samuel looked toward Evelyn.
"Ask her."
Leo turned.
His wife stared at the photograph.
Her face drained of color.
"No..."
Leo looked at her.
"What?"
Evelyn began shaking.
"That's impossible."
Samuel's voice was quiet.
"Is it?"
Leo stared between them.
"What are you talking about?"
Samuel pointed toward the photograph.
"That picture was taken two years ago."
Leo felt a chill.
"Where?"
Samuel looked directly at Evelyn.
"In the backyard of the house where your wife was living."
Leo stared at her.
"Evelyn?"
She shook her head.
"I didn't know."
Samuel's expression hardened.
"You saw both boys that day."
"No."
"You were there."
"Samuel, stop!"
Leo felt the world tilt.
His wife had seen Thomas?
Two years ago?
While Leo was still in prison?
He turned toward her.
"Tell me he's lying."
Evelyn began crying.
"Leo..."
"Tell me."
She couldn't.
Leo looked at the photograph again.
Two boys.
Two identical faces.
Standing together.
Smiling.
His sons had met.
And nobody had told him.
A sudden burst of gunfire shattered the moment.
Samuel grabbed Leo's arm.
"Move!"
They ran toward the maintenance stairwell.
Evelyn stumbled.
Leo caught her.
Behind them, Adrian shouted orders.
The federal agents were advancing.
Smoke filled the loading bay.
Samuel pushed open the stairwell door.
"Down!"
They descended into darkness.
Leo held Evelyn's hand with one arm and the hard drive with the other.
His heart pounded.
At the bottom of the stairs, Samuel stopped beside a narrow service passage.
"This leads to the drainage tunnel."
Leo stared at him.
"How do you know?"
"I helped design the building."
Leo frowned.
"You were an accountant."
Samuel gave a bitter smile.
"That wasn't my only job."
He opened the passage.
Cold air rushed toward them.
Somewhere behind them, a heavy door slammed.
Footsteps echoed.
Samuel looked over his shoulder.
"We have to hurry."
Leo didn't move.
"Not until you tell me where Thomas is."
Samuel's expression changed.
"Leo—"
"Where is my son?"
The older man looked at Evelyn.
Then back at Leo.
"Thomas isn't where Adrian showed you."
Leo felt his stomach drop.
"What?"
"The video was real. But the location wasn't."
"Then where is he?"
Samuel hesitated.
"Somewhere Adrian doesn't control."
Leo stared at him.
"Who has him?"
Samuel's eyes filled with something that looked like regret.
"Daniel."
Leo froze.
"Daniel is dead."
Samuel nodded slowly.
"That's what Adrian believes."
The words seemed impossible.
Leo stared at him.
"What are you saying?"
Samuel reached into his pocket.
He withdrew a small phone.
Then tapped the screen.
A video opened.
A dimly lit room.
A man sitting at a wooden table.
His face was bruised.
His hair was longer than Leo remembered.
But there was no mistaking him.
Daniel Mercer.
Alive.
Leo's breath caught.
The man looked directly into the camera.
Then spoke.
"Leo, if Samuel is showing you this, it means Adrian has found the storage unit."
Leo stared at the screen.
Daniel continued.
"I know you hate me. You have every reason to. But there's something you need to understand before you decide who to trust."
The man paused.
His expression became grim.
"Thomas is safe. For now."
Leo's hands trembled.
"Where is he?" he whispered.
Daniel looked down.
Then back at the camera.
"And Leo..."
His voice cracked.
"The child you've been raising as Toby isn't who you think he is."
Leo felt the air leave his lungs.
The video ended.
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
Then Leo turned toward Samuel.
"What does that mean?"
Samuel's face was pale.
"Leo..."
"What does that mean?"
Evelyn began sobbing.
Samuel looked at her.
Then at Leo.
And finally, he whispered the words that made Leo's blood run cold.
"Because the boy waiting for you outside Blackwood wasn't Tobias Vale."