Chapter 2 - The Name in Black Ink.
Nathan's sudden return changed the entire hallway.
The nurses stopped moving.
The two security officers slowed when they recognized Luca.
The gray-haired attorney did not.
He marched forward and held out his hand for the binder.
"That document was signed fraudulently."
Luca did not give it to him.
"Your client left."
Nathan's face reddened.
"I changed my mind."
Emily laughed once through her tears.
The sound was bitter enough to make Nathan flinch.
"You changed your mind because someone told you to come back."
The woman in the red dress remained near the elevator.
She crossed her arms and watched.
Luca noticed that she was not surprised by any of this.
She looked annoyed.
Nathan moved toward Emily.
"Give me the baby."
Emily tightened both arms around her daughter.
"No."
"I'm her father."
"Five minutes ago, you said you weren't doing this."
The attorney stepped between them.
"Mr. Cole has rights that cannot be erased by an impulsive signature from a stranger."
Luca finally handed the binder to the nurse.
"Then let the hospital preserve the page exactly as it is until someone with actual authority reviews it."
The attorney narrowed his eyes.
"Who exactly are you?"
The nurse answered before Luca could.
"He's Luca Morelli."
One of the security officers immediately looked at the other.
The attorney's confidence shifted.
Nathan's did not.
"I don't care what his last name is."
Luca took one quiet step forward.
"You should care about your daughter's first name more."
Nathan glanced at the newborn.
He said nothing.
Emily noticed.
"You don't know it, do you?"
Nathan's silence became an answer.
The woman in red looked toward the ceiling.
Emily's mouth trembled.
"Her name is Grace."
Nathan rubbed his face.
"Emily, stop making this dramatic."
Luca's eyes hardened.
"She gave birth six hours ago."
Nathan looked at him.
"Stay out of this."
"You made it my business when you came back with guards instead of an apology."
The attorney raised both hands.
"Everyone needs to calm down."
A hospital administrator appeared from the far end of the corridor.
Behind her came a uniformed police officer.
The administrator introduced herself as Dr. Maren Hale.
She asked for the binder.
The nurse gave it to her.
Dr. Hale read Luca's signature and looked sharply at him.
"Mr. Morelli, you understand this signature does not magically establish lawful paternity."
"I do."
"Then why sign it?"
Luca looked at Emily.
"So the first thing this child saw on paper wasn't an empty line left by a man who walked away."
Emily lowered her eyes.
Nathan scoffed.
"This is insane."
Then the woman in red finally spoke.
"Nathan, we need to leave."
Her voice was too urgent.
Luca turned toward her.
"Why?"
She stared back at him.
"Because this has nothing to do with you."
"You keep saying that like you're trying to convince yourself."
The police officer asked everyone for identification.
The woman in red hesitated before opening her purse.
Luca noticed a white envelope inside.
Three words were printed across it in blue laboratory ink.
PATERNITY TEST RESULTS.
Emily saw it too.
Nathan moved quickly and snapped the purse closed.
The hallway became silent again.
Emily stared at him.
"You already had a DNA test?"
Nathan did not answer.
Luca's voice dropped.
"Now we know why you came back."
The woman in red whispered something to Nathan.
Nathan's face drained of color.
May you like
Then he looked at Grace for the first time with something that was not rejection.
It was fear.
