Richard did not flinch, but his jaw clenched so hard the muscles in his cheek trembled.

He looked at me, his eyes dark with a bitter, cold hatred.

“This is a mistake, Emily,” Richard said, his voice low and venomous. “You are destroying the family name for a child who will never fit into this world.”

Nathan stepped in front of me, his tall frame completely blocking his father from my sight.

“She is my daughter, Father,” Nathan said, his voice shaking with a quiet anger. “And she is the only family that matters to me now.”

Richard sneered, but the officers did not give him another chance to speak.

They gripped his elbows and guided him toward the heavy double doors of the boardroom.

His leather shoes squeaked against the polished floor, the sound echoing in the sudden silence of the room.

The heavy doors clicked shut behind them, and he was gone.

I looked down at the small silver key resting on the dark carpet.

The metal seemed to catch the harsh fluorescent light of the ceiling.