haven

Chapter 5 - The Cousin’s Cold Ambush

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At 2:00 PM, the double glass doors of the hospital suite swung open without warning.

A tall, impeccably dressed thirty-two-year-old man strode into the room. He wore a custom-tailored charcoal Italian suit, a five-thousand-dollar Rolex on his wrist, and carried a leather-bound board binder.

It was Julian Whitmore—Arthur’s nephew and the Chief Operating Officer of Whitmore Global Logistics.

“Uncle Arthur!” Julian began with an air of theatrical concern, walking toward the bed. “I received the emergency alert that you had deployed the private trauma team! What on earth happened? Did you have another cardiac scare?”

Julian’s eyes abruptly landed on Annie and me standing by the window in our oversized, fresh clothes, and then on Grace sleeping in the bed.

The false warmth on Julian’s face vanished in a fraction of a second, replaced by a momentary, venomous twitch of raw panic.

“What is the meaning of this?” Julian asked, his voice tightening as he pointed a manicured finger at us. “Why are these street urchins in the private family medical suite? Uncle, you know the board has strict protocols about security—”

“These are Thomas’s children, Julian,” Arthur interrupted in a low, dangerous tone.

Julian’s breath hitched. He quickly forced a smooth, patronizing chuckle, smoothing his silk tie. “Thomas’s children? Uncle, please... you’ve been chasing phantom heirs for five years! Countless grifters have tried to exploit Thomas’s tragedy to get their hands on the trust! We need immediate DNA verification before you let these strangers into our private circle!”

“We will conduct the genetic verification, Julian,” Arthur replied coldly. “Dr. Cole took the blood samples thirty minutes ago. The results will be processed in one hour.”

Julian’s jaw tightened. A thin bead of sweat formed along his temple.

“Of course,” Julian stammered, stepping backward toward the door. “I... I only have your best interests at heart, Uncle. I will return to the corporate headquarters to prepare for tomorrow’s shareholder summit.”

As Julian hurried down the corridor, I noticed his hand shaking as he pulled out his smartphone to make a frantic, hushed call.

“He knew us, didn't he?” I looked up at Arthur.

May you like

Arthur’s eyes turned cold as winter ice. “Yes, Caleb. And now we uncover the rest of his web.”

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