Chapter 5 - THE SIGNATURE IN THE INK
I looked at the manila envelope on the table.
“What is that?” I asked Eleanor’s father.
“The patent rights to the synthetic valve Leo needs,” he replied, adjusting his silk tie. “My company developed it. And technically, it’s still in the experimental phase. I have the legal right to pull any patient from the trial for ‘liability concerns.’”
They had cornered me entirely. If I fought them legally, it would take weeks. Leo didn't have weeks. He didn't even have hours.
I looked at Eleanor. She sat in her white gown, staring at the velvet box containing the sapphire ring. There was no love in her eyes, only a hollow, corporate triumph.
“Fine,” I said. The word tasted like poison. “I’ll marry her.”
My mother let out a long, elegant breath of relief. “Good boy, Julian. I knew you’d see reason. The car is downstairs. We can keep the schedule.”
“On one condition,” I added, stopping my mother in her tracks. I pointed at the manila envelope. “I want the valve released. Right now. In front of me. I want the hospital administrator on speakerphone confirming Leo is being prepped for surgery, or I don't get in the car.”
Eleanor’s father narrowed his eyes. He looked at my mother, who gave a slight nod.
He pulled out his phone, dialed the hospital, and put it on speaker.
“Dr. Evans,” Eleanor’s father said. “Release the experimental valve to the Hayes boy. Prep him immediately.”
“Confirmed, sir,” the tinny voice of the hospital administrator replied.
I closed my eyes, letting a wave of relief wash over my burning chest.
“Now,” my mother said briskly. “Go wash your face, Julian. You look like a madman.”
I walked into the private executive washroom attached to the boardroom and locked the heavy door behind me. I turned on the faucet, splashing freezing water onto my face.
I pulled out my phone and dialed the only person I trusted in the world. Marcus, the lead software engineer at my own tech firm—the company I had built from the ground up, entirely separate from my mother’s wealth.
“Marcus,” I whispered into the phone. “I need a massive favor, and I need it done in the next twenty minutes.”
“I’m at the venue, Julian, where are you?” Marcus asked.
“I need you to access the Vance Trust’s encrypted server,” I instructed, keeping my voice low. “Four years ago, my mother had documents forged using my digital signature. Custody papers. I need you to find the metadata. I need the IP address of the computer that generated them.”
“Julian, that’s highly illegal without a warrant—”
“Marcus!” I hissed. “My son is dying. Just do it.”
I hung up, dried my face, and walked back into the boardroom.
May you like
I picked up the velvet box holding the sapphire ring, slipped it into my pocket, and looked at my mother.
“Let’s go to a wedding,” I said.
