The Truth No One Believes**
The kitchen filled with chaos.
The crash at the front door sent Lila into a terrified scream, the hooded intruder spun toward the sound, and Aria clutched the baby so tightly against her chest she felt his heartbeat pressing into hers like a tiny drum of fear.
But the voice that shouted her name next—
"ARIA!"
—did not belong to a stranger.
It belonged to her mother.
The intruder darted back, melting into the dark corridor with a speed that made Aria's skin crawl. Lila lunged for the back door at the same moment the kitchen lights snapped on, flooding the room with brightness that pushed back the shadows but not the terror.
"Aria!" her mother cried again, rushing inside with her father close behind, both dressed in expensive evening wear—apparently pulled away from a gala. They stopped dead when they saw her pale face, trembling hands, and the baby cradled in her arms.
Her mother gasped.Her father's jaw dropped.
For one suspended second, everyone just stared.
Then the explosion happened.
"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?" her mother demanded, voice shrill enough to rattle glass. "Aria Meredith Sterling, whose baby is that?!"
Aria opened her mouth, but her father stepped forward first—calmer but furious, eyes sharp behind his glasses.
"You disappeared from your room. The guard called us. We rushed home to find the front door open, the main hall in chaos, and now—THIS?" He pointed at the baby, his voice cracking. "Aria… what have you done?"
Aria tightened her hold. "Dad, I didn't do anything."
Lila burst out, "Sir, someone was inside the house—"
But her mother cut her off, voice cold and suffocating. "Don't lie for her, Lila."
"I'm not lying!" Lila insisted. "There was a man—hooded—he was in the hallway!"
Her father ran a hand through his hair. "God help us. Aria, are you in trouble? Did you… are you hiding something from us?"
Aria's throat tightened painfully. "I swear—I swear on everything—I have never been pregnant. I have never given birth. I don't know whose baby this is."
Silence crashed over the room.
Her mother's face drained of all color, her father's brows froze mid-arch, and Lila stared in disbelief that Aria had said it so plainly.
Then her mother whispered, trembling, "But the baby… that baby looks exactly like you."
Aria felt her heart drop. She had noticed it too. Those soft brown eyes. That small, heart-shaped chin. The faint crease above the right eyebrow.
"He does," Aria whispered. "But I've never met him before today."
Her father's voice hardened. "Impossible." He motioned to the papers scattered on the foyer floor. "Explain that envelope."
Aria swallowed. "Dad… inside the envelope… was a DNA test."
Her father's expression tightened.
"A DNA test?""Done on who?""The baby?""You?"
Questions overlapped.
Aria nodded. "It says… the baby is biologically mine."
Her mother screamed.
Her father staggered back.
Lila covered her mouth.
"No," her mother choked out, shaking her head violently. "No. That is not possible. We would know. We monitor your health. Your annual checkups. Your schedule. Your entire past year has been spent building your startup—you barely have time to sleep, let alone—" Her voice broke.
She couldn't finish the sentence.
"Mom," Aria pleaded, stepping forward, "I don't understand any of it either. I don't know who left him at the door. I don't know why the test says I'm his mother. I don't know anything!"
The baby whimpered at the rising tension, and Aria gently rocked him, instinctively, protectively.
Her father pinched the bridge of his nose. "You're telling us a baby… your supposed child… was left at our doorstep with a falsified DNA report and you expect us to believe this is some kind of elaborate setup?"
"I'm telling you the truth," Aria whispered.
Her mother wasn't convinced. "Aria, this is not a joke you can walk away from."
"I'm not joking!"
"Then how are you his mother?!" her mother screamed.
Aria's breath hitched. "I don't know!"
The room fell into a suffocating quiet.
Her father finally spoke, voice low and decisive. "We're calling Dr. Ruiz in the morning. We will run independent tests. Until then…" His stare hardened at the baby. "We maintain distance."
Aria's chest twisted. "Distance? Dad, he's terrified. He needs me."
"Aria. There are procedures."
Her mother folded her arms. "We don't know where this baby came from. What if someone is trying to frame you? Or extort us?" Her voice softened just slightly. "We cannot get attached."
Too late.Aria already was.
The baby curled into her chest as though he belonged there.
As though he had always belonged there.
"You can't just… treat him like a threat," Aria whispered, voice shaking.
Her mother gave her a hard look. "We're not heartless, Aria. But we're not fools either."
Her father agreed grimly. "Until we have proof, we take every precaution."
Aria wanted to argue—but exhaustion pressed in, heavy and relentless. She had fainted once. She couldn't afford to collapse again.
Her parents exchanged a glance.
Then her father said carefully, "You should rest. Lila will help you to your room."
"And the baby stays with me," Aria said without hesitation.
Her mother opened her mouth to protest, but her father cut in, unexpectedly gentle. "Let her. She won't sleep otherwise."
Lila guided Aria down the hallway, the baby tucked safely in her arms. The house felt colder now. Every light too bright. Every shadow too deep.
As they reached her bedroom door, Aria paused.
"Lila…" she whispered, "you believe me, right? That he isn't mine?"
Lila hesitated only a second before nodding. "I believe you, Miss Aria. But I also believe someone wanted you to have him."
Aria's blood chilled. "Why?"
Lila looked over Aria's shoulder, down the dark hallway.
"As soon as I understand the answer," she whispered, "I'll tell you."
Aria stepped inside her room. Lila gently closed the door behind her.
Silence settled.
The baby blinked up at her, innocent and trusting, tiny fingers reaching for hers again.
Aria sank into the edge of the bed, staring at him.
How could a child she had never met hold her finger like he had always known her?
How could he look at her like he recognized her?
Tears welled in her eyes.
"Who are you?" she whispered.
And then—
A soft thud sounded against her window.
Aria's head snapped up.
Another thud.
Slow.
Intentional.
Someone was standing outside her second-story window.
To be continued…