“Actually, now that you mention it …” Hunter began to say and jumped to his feet. He started rummaging through a dense pile of paperwork on his desk, talking to himself. “Where is it? I know I saw … Score!” Hunter shouted with excitement as he approached Annika and Leon and offered them the file he retrieved. Annika and Leon shared a glance before Leon took the file and opened it.
“What is this?” Annika asked as she peered over Leon’s shoulder, attempting to look at the papers from the file.
“What? Is this true?” Leon inquired immediately after reading the first page’s content. Hunter smiled and nodded.
“What is it? What did you find out?” Annika pressed Leon, who was secretly enjoying her earnest pleas and the close contact.
“According to this, Mrs. Galloway isn’t Mr. Galloway’s first wife. She’s his second. And if these dates are accurate, Sadie was born eight months after they got married,” he replied.
“Okay?” Leon questioned.
“Hunter, you don’t think?” Annika gaped at him.
“Worth a shot, don’t you think?”
“Am I missing something?” Leon interjected.
“Mr. Von Doren, pregnancies last ten months. If Sadie was born only eight months into her parents’ marriage, then there are two possibilities to explain this scenario,” Annika replied.
“Which are?”
“One, Mr. Galloway had an affair with Sadie’s mom, which meant he got another woman pregnant while married. Go figure,” she snarked immediately before continuing, “or Sadie may have been conceived before her parents met. Ergo …”
“Ergo, Sadie might not belong to Mr. Galloway, and her mom lied to him to persuade him to marry her and leave his first wife,” Leon ended Annika’s thought.
“Precisely.”
“How do we prove that?” he asked while furrowing his brows.
“Simple. Kenzie has Sadie’s DNA on record, and I have Mr. Galloway’s. We already have the necessary components for genetic testing to compare their DNA,” she answered.
“Isn’t that illegal?” Leon pointed out, quirking a brow in skepticism.
“Not necessarily. Hospitals and doctor’s offices often compare their patients’ DNA for instances like blood transfusions and organ donation to avoid complications such as transmitting rare diseases into an otherwise healthy individual or incompatible blood types and Rh factors. That would be catastrophic. In some instances, genetic testing is required for paternity testing when one party is unwilling or unavailable.” Hunter responded from off to the side.
“So, this can all be done under the guise of standard practices?” Leon verified, and both Annika and Hunter nodded their heads. “Fucking brilliant.”
“Thank you,” Annika and Hunter replied in unison, causing them to stare at each other in confusion and Leon to chuckle at their interaction.
“Alright, our plan of action is now in place. All that’s left is to gather the necessary documents and evidence to submit to Uncle Matt. Once I’m ready, I’ll need you two to meet me at his chambers, and if we can get him to sign everything right then and there, you won’t have to wait to confront Jeff and Sadie,” Hunter told Leon and Annika as he meticulously began to gather every file for the case.
“Hunter, thank you. And I’m sorry you had to witness another emotional breakdown earlier,” Annika expressed her gratitude and stood to hug him. Hunter stopped what he was doing and hugged her back. But to his dismay, what he saw for a split second was Leon Von Doren with a menacing expression on his face. Leon may have shaken it off quickly, but Hunter still caught wind of it. This further proved that Leon was falling for Annika, and he couldn’t help but think how lucky Annika was that someone as successful as Leon Von Doren had his eyes on her. There was no doubt in his mind that if Leon managed to win Annika’s heart, they would win the lottery in differing ways.
“Don’t mention it, Anni. I still have a lot of work to do,” he replied and gently pulled away. “Forgive me for not walking you guys out,” he continued, as he stepped away and extended his hand towards Leon. Despite the scowl on his face moments ago, Leon respectfully shook Hunter’s hand. A few moments later, he and Annika walked out of the building side by side and were greeted by the night sky.
“Oh wow, it’s a lot later than I expected,” Annika noted while peering at her phone screen to check the time. “I feel awful keeping Hunter so late. Kenz must be annoyed with me by now.”
“Please, you know that’s not true, Annika. Kenzie is your best friend, and Hunter is her husband. I’m sure she knows this case is important to all of us, Kenzie included,” Leon reassured her.
“But still. Ever since Hunter took on my case, the time he has to spend away from home has progressively increased, and I speak from experience when I say it’s not fun waiting on your husband to get home from work constantly,” she responded with her eyes downcast. Leon couldn’t hold back from bringing her into his embrace again. “Mr. Von—”
“Shhh … Just let me comfort you, Annika.” Annika’s body went rigid, and she lost her ability to react momentarily. Though what was unfolding seemed trivial to the two people involved, in the eyes of a third party, Annika and Leon’s embrace appeared cozier than one would like to see. And that third party was none other than Jeffrey Hollands. Since he knew Annika had hired Hunter to represent her, he was confident she would be at his office if she weren’t at home. To that end, he decided to pay them a visit after meeting with Sadie.
Lately, ever since Sadie had mentioned the possibility of Annika sleeping with Leon, Jeffrey was coming apart at the seams. The frequency of his sexual rendezvous with Sadie had diminished significantly, much to Sadie’s displeasure. Jeffrey was still contemplating whether he was ready to let go of his and Annika’s eleven-year history together. He was so disturbed by Sadie’s accusation of Annika cheating on him with Leon that he wanted to confront Annika about it. But what he witnessed outside Hunter’s office building that night stopped him dead in his tracks. Jeffrey’s blood ran cold as the psychological distress took hold of him, inciting a riot within his heart while his face twisted in resentment.
From Jeffrey’s perspective, he watched with eyes quivering with emotion as his darling wife and his mistress’ ex-husband clung to one another romantically. After gleaning his answer from the gut-wrenching scene unfolding in front of him, Jeffrey’s resolve faltered. The sense of betrayal hit him like a freight train going full throttle. He didn’t want to be with Sadie. Annika was the love of his life; he knew that now. Seeing his wife, the woman he vowed to cherish forever, in the arms of another man, a man Jeffrey himself deliberately abetted in ruining several months ago, felt like a bucket of ice water splashed over his body. Jeffrey could not stomach having a taste of his own medicine and finally understood the feeling of being stabbed in the back. He grew weary at the prospect of trying to salvage his marriage after what he had just seen and the pain he had inflicted upon Annika over the past few months.
How could the world be so small that, of all people, Leon Von Doren would be the one to take his beloved Annika away from him? It had never occurred to Jeffrey that he could stay with Annika and leave Sadie, not until that earth-shattering moment when he could not stand the sight of his wife being held by someone other than himself. Jeffrey’s worst nightmare had manifested twenty feet away from him, but it was far from over. Tears formed in his eyes, and his world was cloaked in red now as he watched Leon lean down and capture Annika’s lips in a searing kiss. And, as if to rub salt in the wound, Annika didn’t appear to resist Leon’s advances. Consumed by anguish, Jeffrey started his car and was gone like the wind.