Layla is my daughter

"What? This has to be some kind of joke!" Layla's voice shook with disbelief as she snatched the report from Lucius's trembling hand.

For so many years, she had lived under a false identity, never once suspecting the truth. Her eyes welled up with tears, her breathing quickening as she scanned the report, each word sending a wave of shock through her.

She raised a hand to her mouth, the tears slipping down her cheeks unchecked. Overwhelmed, she opened the car door and stepped out, needing the open air to steady herself.

Lucius quickly followed, stepping around to face her. "Is this true?" she asked, her voice a whisper as she met his gaze, her eyes filled with betrayal and heartbreak.

All the memories of her life, every unfair treatment, every instance she'd been overlooked—each painful moment replayed in her mind, now reframed in a shocking new light.