Chapter 11
Cassian
The door closed with a soft click that belied the hurricane raging inside me. I crossed my office in three long strides, then turned and paced back, my footsteps silent on the plush carpet.
I wasn't a man who lost control. Control was currency. Control was power. But right now, my fingers itched to break something.
She'd hidden my son. My flesh and blood. For over two years.
I stopped at the window, staring out at the Manhattan skyline without seeing it. The memory of Isla's face when I confronted her burned behind my eyes—the panic, the resignation, the fear. Good. She should be afraid. Anyone else who'd crossed me this way would already be begging for mercy.
But she wasn't anyone else. And the child—Leo—wasn't just a pawn in this game.
He was my son.
The words still felt foreign on my tongue, a language I'd never expected to learn. I'd spent a lifetime ensuring I wouldn't follow in my father's footsteps, wouldn't create a child who'd grow up under the shadow of the family business. Yet here we were.
"She hid my son from me," I whispered to the empty room. "That's war. But war has rules—and I make them."
I moved to my desk and pulled up Isla's employee file on my computer. The background check had been thorough—or so I'd thought. Clearly, I needed to have a conversation with my security team about their definition of "comprehensive."
There. An emergency contact from her initial paperwork. Maya Chen. I cross-referenced the number and found an address in Brooklyn. Same building as Isla's apartment. The pieces clicked into place—the neighbor, the friend, the babysitter.
I pulled up Maya Chen's details. The address matched Isla's building—one floor below.
A quick search revealed she ran an in-home daycare.
Sunshine Steps. Small, licensed, excellent word-of-mouth reviews.
The kind of place a protective mother would choose.
Which meant Leo was there. Right now. One floor below Isla's apartment.
My intercom buzzed. "Mr. Barone, your three o'clock is here."
"Cancel it," I said, already reaching for my jacket. "Cancel my last two meetings. Something urgent has come up."
"Yes, sir. Should I reschedule for—"
"I'll let you know." I cut the connection, pocketed my phone, and headed for the door.
The security team downstairs didn't question me as I bypassed my usual car and driver and took one of the unmarked SUVs from the garage instead. Twenty minutes later, I parked half a block from Isla's building, engine off, tinted windows providing the privacy I needed.
I sat there for a moment, staring at the building. My son was in there.
According to the daycare's schedule—publicly available on their website—outdoor play was from 3:30 to 4:00. I checked my watch. 3:25.
Five minutes.
I got out and walked to where I could see the building's small courtyard through the fence. Right on schedule, the door opened, and a woman emerged with four small children.
Maya Chen. I recognized her from the social media photos I'd found. And with her…
My breath stopped.
Dark curly hair. Small for his age but sturdy. Running toward the playground equipment with single-minded determination.
Leo.
My son.
I watched him climb the ladder to the slide, his movements careful but confident. When he reached the top and pushed off, his laugh carried across the courtyard.
That sound. My son's laughter.
I stood there, gripping the fence, watching him play. Each moment etched itself into my memory. The way he ran. The way he smiled. The way he looked when he was happy.
But watching my son play, knowing I couldn't go to him, couldn't introduce myself—patience had never felt so much like torture.
After ten minutes, Maya gathered the children. "Inside time! Let's wash our hands for snack time!"
They filed back into the building, Leo trailing at the end, still chattering about the slide.
I returned to the SUV and waited, engine off. I should leave. Go back to the office. Wait until tonight.
But I couldn't. Not yet.
At 4:05, the building's main entrance opened. A slender woman with dark hair pulled into a messy bun walked out, holding a small boy's hand.
Isla. And Leo.
Even from half a block away, I recognized her walk, the determined set of her shoulders. Leo bounced beside her, clearly talking nonstop about something, his free hand gesturing enthusiastically.
They turned the corner toward the subway entrance, disappearing from view.
I sat there for another moment, then made a decision.
I walked to the building’s entrance. The door was locked, but an older woman was slowly making her way toward the front. She pushed open the door, and I held it open. I smiled at her, wishing her a good day as I entered the building.
I took the stairs to the third floor.
Outside Maya's door, I could hear children's voices. Singing. Something about wheels on a bus. Other parents must have arrived, picking up their kids. The daycare day was winding down.
I stood there, listening. Imagining Leo on the other side of that door just minutes ago. His voice. His laugh.
What was I doing? Isla had already picked him up. He wasn't even here.
I was chasing ghosts of my son instead of waiting to meet him properly.
Tonight. I'd meet him properly tonight.
But now I knew. I knew his laugh. His voice. The way he moved. The way he held his mother's hand.
And nothing—no one—would keep me from him any longer.
I turned and walked back to the elevator, each step deliberate. By the time I reached the lobby, I'd composed myself enough that the doorman didn't give me a second glance.
The October air hit me as I stepped outside, cold and sharp. I climbed back into the SUV and sat there for a moment, hands gripping the steering wheel.
I'd seen my son. Heard his voice. Watched him play. Saw him walk away with his mother.
But I hadn't met him. Not yet.
My phone buzzed. Marco.
"Yes." I started the engine. "Make sure the doctor arrives at Isla's apartment at exactly seven. Not a minute before, not a minute after."
"Already confirmed. Boss—are you sure about this? Meeting him tonight?"
I thought about Leo's laugh. The way he'd run toward that slide. The determination in his small shoulders.
"I've never been more sure of anything."
"Understood. Security detail is already in place around her building. Discreet, like you asked."
"Good. I want—" I stopped. What did I want? To protect a son I'd never met? To make up for two and a half years in one evening? "I want to know if Matteo makes any moves. Anything at all."
"Copy that. See you tonight?"
"No. After the paternity test, I'm meeting him. Taking them to dinner."
"Taking them where?"
I hadn't thought that far ahead. "I'll figure it out. Somewhere child-friendly. Low-key."
Marco was quiet for a moment. "Boss, do you know anything about kids?"
"I'm about to learn."
I hung up and pulled into traffic, heading back to the office.
I had three hours to figure out how to be a father.