Chapter 5 Blood Draw and Paternity Test

Three days for results. Alexander didn’t have that kind of patience. "I'm giving you at most one day."

"Yes, we'll expedite it."

Alexander said, "You're dismissed."

"Yes."

Liam lay on the bed, his innocent eyes blinking softly. Suddenly, he reached out toward Alexander, wanting to be held.

Alexander walked to the bedside and bent down, scooping Liam into his arms. The nanny cooed, "Liam loves his father the most; he feels safest with him."

Liam never liked being held by anyone, except Alexander. "Liam, give daddy a kiss." Alexander leaned down, bringing his face close to Liam's.

Liam kissed his cheek. Alexander gently kissed his forehead, his eyes softening with a tenderness no one had ever seen before.

Everyone in the Hayes family believed Liam had intellectual disabilities—after all, at seven years old, he still couldn't speak. They assumed he had cognitive difficulties.

But Alexander felt that, as the child was his son, he had to take responsibility.

"Liam, can you be a good boy and go to sleep?" Alexander coaxed gently. Liam nodded.

Alexander helped him settle down to sleep. He walked to the doorway, watched Liam close his eyes, turned off the lights, and left the room… Dawn.

The first light of morning appeared on the horizon. In the room, Grace pounded weakly on the door. "Open the door! Someone, please open this door!!"

The room door was locked from the outside. Grace tried to break the lock, but it held fast, refusing to give way.She kicked at the door, but it was even sturdier than the lock. Undeterred, she walked to the window and pushed it open.The room was on the fourth floor—a seventy-foot drop that was terrifying to look at.

A servant's voice came from outside the door. "Miss Foster, I suggest you conserve your energy. Unless you explain about the child, Mr. Hayes won’t release you!"

Grace was completely frustrated. What exactly was she supposed to explain? She thought of Liam, whom Alexander had been holding.

When Alexander was in a vegetative state, bedridden and unresponsive, the Hayes family arranged three IVF procedures for her to ensure an heir.

When her belly showed no signs of pregnancy, Alexander's grandmother, Mary Hayes, certainly wouldn't have given up—she wouldn’t have put all her efforts into Grace for nothing.

Liam was probably born to another woman Mary had arranged for Alexander. After all, Mary couldn’t bear the idea of the Hayes bloodline dying out under her watch.

Now they were blaming her. If he were her son, disabilities or not, he would still be her child, and she would never abandon him!

But now Alexander had trapped her here. She couldn’t get out, and she worried about what would happen to Max alone at home.

Grace was frantic with worry, completely drained both emotionally and physically. Without realizing it, she had stayed awake all night until dawn.

Footsteps sounded outside the door. Grace hurried over and knocked urgently. "Is anyone there?" The door opened.

Grace looked carefully at the person in the doorway and jumped in shock. "Mrs. Mary Hayes?" The nanny helped her as she slowly walked in.

Two bodyguards blocked the doorway, staring coldly at Grace, silently signaling that she must not try to escape. Grace felt like a prisoner under heavy guard.

"Grace, it's been seven years, and you haven't changed a bit!" Mary sat down on the bed.

Grace said, "Mrs. Hayes."

Mary asked, "Did the Hayes family treat you well?""Tell me the truth—after the IVF procedures I arranged for you back then, did you actually become pregnant?" Grace bit her lip and shook her head."No… really, no." She couldn’t admit it—how could she possibly stand a chance against the Hayes family for Max’s custody?

Mary said, "Three years ago, one of Alexander's men brought Liam back from an orphanage. This child looks exactly like Alexander—it's unfortunate that Liam has developmental challenges." No one knows if he will ever be able to speak. The doctors suspect that malnutrition during pregnancy caused underdevelopment of the cerebellum.

She suddenly narrowed her eyes, glaring at Grace. "Don't think I don't know what you're scheming. Did you really believe seven years ago that Alexander would never wake up?" "You wanted to use Alexander's son to inherit the fortune, but when the child was born with disabilities, you simply abandoned him without a second thought?"

Grace replied, "Mrs. Hayes, you don't need to assume the worst of me. I have no malicious intentions. If he were my child, I would certainly accept him."

"That's for the best! I heard Alexander drew your blood for a paternity test. Let's see how you'll respond when the results come out!" "If Alexander finds out you abandoned the child, he won't go easy on you!" She started to leave. Grace asked, "When can I leave?"

"We'll get to the bottom of this!" Mary said, then left the room. Grace, frantic with worry, watched helplessly as the door closed and collapsed onto the bed.

The online introduction read: "Alexander Hayes, CEO of Crest Corporation." It was just a single, extremely brief line.

The Hayes family, which controlled Novaria’s economic lifeline, had always remained the city’s most enigmatic dynasty.

Information about Alexander online was scarce—not even a photograph. Max tilted his head, drumming his fingers on the desk, eyes narrowing with suspicion.

He had set up surveillance around their neighborhood complex. Watching the footage, he saw Grace being dragged into a car.

Using the license plate number, he traced it back—the car belonged to Crest Corporation, owned by Alexander Hayes.

He was certain now—Grace had been kidnapped by Alexander’s people. But why? She had no money. Could this Alexander be another lecherous older man with designs on Grace? Max suddenly felt a shiver of nervousness. Just then, the doorbell rang.

Max walked to the door and asked alertly, "Who is it?"

"Max, it's me," came a gentle voice from outside. Max immediately recognized Grace's good friend, Zara White.

He opened the door, and Zara stepped in. "Max, is your mom not awake yet? We had planned to go to the interviews together today," she asked curiously.

Max suddenly grabbed Zara's hand. "Zara, take me to Crest Corporation!"

Startled, Zara asked, "What's wrong?"

"My mom has been kidnapped by Crest Corporation!" Max blurted out.

Zara stood at the reception desk of Crest Corporation, holding Max's hand, her mind racing with doubt. Could she really take the words of a seven-year-old seriously?

Zara couldn't understand how Grace might be linked to the CEO of Crest Corporation, especially since so little was known about Alexander Hayes. He was the billionaire CEO of Crest Corporation—how could he possibly be capable of kidnapping anyone? Yet in Zara’s mind, Max was a genius.

Grace and Zara met thanks to Max. Zara had been his preschool teacher, and through their time together, she and Grace became friends.

Max behaved around Grace like any ordinary six- or seven-year-old—cute, innocent, and never showing off. Yet Zara had accidentally discovered his extraordinary talents.

Zara knew one of Max's secret identities: though he wasn’t even seven, he had already become the youngest member of the Cerebra Society, code-named MIO.