The verdict came on a Tuesday, and it changed nothing and everything.
The judge ruled that Makayla was the lawful mother of the child, that the hospital's claim had no standing, that the insemination had been an error for which the clinic bore responsibility — and that the child was hers, and only hers. The courtroom broke into a roar. Eleanor wept. Luciana screamed with joy. And Declan took Makie in his arms and held her so tightly she could barely breathe.
"It's over," he said against her hair. "He is yours. No one can ever take him."
But Makayla could not shake the cold. She had seen the man in the dark coat. And as the celebration swirled around them, she saw Declan's eyes sweep the crowd — searching, wary — and she understood that the verdict had not ended the war. It had only push
