Julian held the cold gold piece tightly against his palm, his knuckles turning pure white.
Julian: Leo? That’s impossible. Leo died in the car accident with Claire five years ago.
Leo: I didn't die! The man in the black truck pulled me out through the back window!
Vanessa: Julian, listen to yourself! This is an extortion scheme cooked up by your business rivals to ruin our merger!
Julian: Be quiet, Vanessa.
Vanessa: How dare you tell me to be quiet in front of five hundred people?
Julian stood up slowly, lifting Leo onto his feet and shielding him behind his broad shoulders.
Julian: Leo, look at me. Who told you to come here today?
Leo: Nobody told me. I saw your picture on the giant billboard near the bus station. You were holding hands with her.
Julian: And how did you know to bring this locket?
Leo: Because inside the back cover, my mom scratched a phone number with a safety pin. But when I dialed it from the shelter payphone, her voice answered.
Leo pointed directly at Vanessa’s diamond-draped neck.
Vanessa: That is a blatant lie! I’ve never spoken to this beggar in my life!
Leo: You did! You said if I ever showed my face in Texas, you would send the police to lock me in a basement forever!
A collective gasp ripped through the crowd of Dallas socialites and corporate executives.
Julian: Is that true, Vanessa? Did you receive a call from a child six months ago?
Vanessa: Of course not! Julian, look at my dress, look at the guests! Are you really going to humiliate me over some stray kid's fantasy?
Julian: The locket has Claire’s private inscription inside. Nobody alive knew that inscription except me, Claire, and the jeweler.
Vanessa: Someone found the wreckage and looted it! It happens all the time!
Julian: Then why does he have my grandmother’s birthmark on his collarbone?
Julian gently pulled down the collar of the oversized shirt, exposing a dark, wine-colored mark.
Vanessa: It’s a coincidence! A sick, twisted coincidence!
Leo: She's lying, Dad! She sends envelopes of cash to Mr. Henderson every month to keep me locked in the boarding house attic!
Julian: Henderson? Thomas Henderson, the private investigator I hired to locate Claire’s remains?
Leo: Yes! He brings me canned beans and tells me my father hated me and abandoned me!
Julian turned toward Vanessa, his jaw set in cold, unyielding rage.
Julian: You told me you helped pay Henderson's firm out of the kindness of your heart.
Vanessa: I did! To help you find closure, Julian!
Julian: No. You paid him to bury my living flesh and blood.
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