“Please,” I said, my voice shaking so much the word was barely a sound.

“He does not need to know anything,” Richard said.

“Keep your mouth shut, or she will be on a plane by tomorrow morning.”

The line went dead before I could reply.

I lowered the phone, my fingers trembling against the glass screen.

The hallway felt colder than it had a moment ago.

Ethan walked out of his study, his leather shoes clicking on the oak floor.

He carried his laptop in one hand and a tablet in the other.

“The lab in Manhattan just uploaded the file,” he said.

He did not notice my pale face or the way I clutched my apron.

“They ran the expedited panel,” Ethan said, setting the laptop on the hallway table.

The screen was bright, casting a sharp blue glow on his face.

“They used my father’s medical DNA records from the estate archives,” he said.

He clicked a button, and a document appeared.

“Let’s see what he was hiding,” he murmured.

I stepped closer, my heart hammering against my ribs.