Chapter 5 - The Line Drawn in Blood
By dawn, news of the lockdown at the Varric Manor had leaked to the city’s underworld.
Beatrice Varric sat in her lavish penthouse suite downtown, sipping black tea, when her encrypted phone rang. It was Victoria Sterling, calling from an unknown location—or so Beatrice thought.
"Is the baby dead yet?" Beatrice asked coldly, not bothering with pleasantries. "Matteo is unraveling. The board is ready to vote him out of the syndicate chairmanship if he can't manage his own household."
"He won't be voting anywhere, stepmother," a deep, chilling voice replied over the line.
Beatrice froze, the teacup trembling in her hand. "Matteo?"
"Victoria is currently explaining every detail of your little arrangement to my head of security in the basement," Matteo said smoothly over the speakerphone. "She was quite thorough. She told me about the offshore accounts in the Cayman Islands, the poison, and Dr. Vance."
Beatrice’s face drained of color. "Matteo... listen to me. That child was a peasant’s brat! He wasn't a Varric! Elena’s baby died, and you were going to lose power to the council! I did what I had to do to protect the family bloodline!"
"You didn't protect the bloodline, Beatrice," Matteo said, his voice dropping into a lethal register. "You murdered my real child by concealing his medical distress, you stole an innocent mother's baby, and you tried to poison an infant in my own home. You have until noon to leave the country. If you are still in this city by 12:01 PM, I will hunt you down myself."
"You wouldn't dare!" Beatrice shrieked. "The Sterlings control the police force! Richard Sterling will destroy you!"
"Let him try," Matteo said, and hung up the phone.
Back in the master suite of the Varric estate, Liana sat on the king-sized bed, watching Nico sleep peacefully in a newly sanitized crib right beside her. For the first time in nearly a month, the baby’s skin was clear, his breathing was rhythmic, and his tiny face looked relaxed.
The door softly opened, and Matteo walked in. He had changed into a clean black dress shirt, though his eyes were still dark with exhaustion.
"How is he?" Matteo asked softly, stepping toward the crib.
"He ate a full bottle and went straight to sleep," Liana said, offering a small, tired smile. "He’s strong, Mr. Varric. He’s a fighter."
Matteo stood beside her, looking down at the sleeping child. "Call me Matteo, Liana. You’re not a maid here anymore. You never will be again."
Liana looked up at him, her heart beating a fast rhythm. "Matteo... what happens now? Legally, he is my son. But to the world, he is Nico Varric, your heir."
Matteo turned to look at her, his gaze intense and unwavering. "To the world, he will remain my son and heir. But to me, you are his mother. I will sign whatever papers you want to grant you full legal custody, but I beg you to let me stay in his life. I may not share his blood, but I have loved him since the moment I held him nine months ago."
Liana felt a lump form in her throat. She saw the genuine love and protectiveness in Matteo’s eyes. He wasn't a monster; he was a grieving father who had been victimized just as she had.
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"We share him," Liana said softly. "We protect him together."
Before Matteo could answer, a loud explosion rocked the perimeter of the estate. Glass shattered in the lower hallways, and alarms began blaring across the estate.
