Chapter 6 - The Man Behind the Camera
Marcus and two bodyguards moved toward the rear hallway.
The man on the monitor did not run.
He remained in full view.
Waiting.
Damian looked at Katelyn.
“Stay here.”
“I don’t take orders from you.”
“This isn’t about control.”
“It always is with your family.”
His expression tightened.
But he did not argue.
He removed his suit jacket and placed it across the edge of the crib, creating a barrier between Katelyn and the nearest exit corridor.
Not to trap her.
To shield her.
Marcus opened the rear door.
The man entered with both hands visible.
He was in his early sixties, gray-haired, lean, and dressed in an ordinary navy coat.
Katelyn knew his eyes.
Cold.
Measured.
Three years earlier, he had placed an airline ticket on her table and said, “If you love Damian, disappear.”
Damian stepped forward.
“Name.”
“Samuel Reed.”
Marcus searched him.
No weapon.
No phone.
Only a sealed flash drive.
Samuel looked at Katelyn.
“You received the clinic notice?”
“You arranged it.”
“Yes.”
Damian’s voice turned dangerous.
“You worked for my father.”
“For twenty-seven years.”
“You threatened her.”
“I delivered your father’s warning.”
“You let me believe she robbed me.”
Samuel looked at Natalia.
“I did not arrange the money transfer.”
Natalia’s face tightened.
Samuel continued.
“Ms. Vale created the theft story herself.”
“That’s a lie,” Natalia said.
Samuel ignored her.
“Vincent ordered Katelyn removed. Natalia decided you needed a reason not to search for her.”
Damian’s face became unreadable.
Katelyn looked at Samuel.
“Why bring us together now?”
“Because Vincent left instructions to be opened if Damian approached forty without a recognized heir.”
Damian’s eyes narrowed.
“What instructions?”
Samuel held up the flash drive.
“A confession.”
Natalia moved toward it.
One bodyguard blocked her.
Samuel handed the drive to Marcus.
“Vincent recorded everything before his death.”
“Why didn’t you release it then?” Katelyn asked.
“Because I was a coward.”
Her face hardened.
“That answer doesn’t give me back three years.”
“No.”
Samuel lowered his eyes.
“But it may keep your child alive.”
The words struck the room like an explosion.
Damian stepped in front of Katelyn instantly.
“Explain.”
Samuel looked toward the windows.
“There are people in the family council who will lose control if the child is legally recognized.”
Katelyn’s pulse raced.
“Who knows I’m pregnant?”
Samuel’s answer was quiet.
“Everyone who matters.”
Damian turned to Marcus.
“Lock down the block.”
The bodyguards moved immediately.
Natalia backed away.
“This has nothing to do with me.”
Samuel looked directly at her.
“You gave them the clinic address.”
Natalia’s panic became visible.
“I didn’t know what they planned.”
Damian stared at the woman he had intended to marry.
“What did they plan?”
Samuel answered for her.
May you like
“To make sure the baby was never born.”
👉 The betrayal was no longer only about money—someone had already begun following Katelyn before she entered the boutique.
