Chapter 7 - The Birthday Script
One week before the party, Andrea found Leo sitting alone inside the playroom.
A sheet of paper rested in his lap.
He quickly folded it when she entered.
“What are you reading?”
“Nothing.”
Andrea sat beside him.
“You never have to hide things from me.”
Leo’s eyes filled with tears.
“Daddy said I have to do something at my party.”
“What?”
“He said Miss Valerie will call me.”
Andrea remained calm for his sake.
“And what are you supposed to do?”
“Go hug her.”
Leo looked down at his shoes.
“Then I have to call her Mommy.”
Andrea’s heart cracked.
“Do you want to do that?”
He shook his head violently.
“No. You’re Mommy.”
Andrea pulled him into her arms.
“No one can make you say something that frightens you.”
“Daddy said you told a big lie.”
“What lie?”
“He said you took me from Miss Valerie.”
Andrea closed her eyes.
Marco was not only preparing a legal attack.
He was rehearsing their child for a public performance.
“Listen to me, Leo. You grew inside my body. I was there when you took your first breath. Nothing Daddy or Miss Valerie says can change that.”
“Why is Daddy lying?”
Andrea could not answer without destroying the little trust Leo still had in his father.
“Sometimes adults want something so badly that they convince themselves hurting people is acceptable.”
“What does Daddy want?”
Andrea looked toward the hallway.
The playroom camera’s indicator light was on.
Marco might be listening.
She kissed Leo’s forehead.
“You don’t need to worry about that. I’ll protect you.”
Later, Andrea searched Marco’s email through records legally available on their shared family computer.
She found the party program.
After the cake ceremony, Marco would give a “family truth announcement.”
Valerie would be introduced as Leo’s birth mother.
A journalist friendly with Marco had already prepared an article accusing Andrea of using money to conceal an illegal surrogacy arrangement.
The article was scheduled to publish during the party.
Marco planned to create public outrage before Andrea could reach a courtroom.
Rebecca understood his strategy.
“He wants the trust board to panic.”
On Leo’s fifth birthday, the shares would transfer under Andrea’s control.
If Marco created a credible maternity dispute that same day, he could ask a judge to freeze the trust.
During the freeze, he planned to pressure Andrea into granting him control.
The public humiliation was not the result of the scheme.
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It was the opening move.
👉 Marco believed the birthday announcement would freeze Leo’s trust—but he did not know Andrea had already ordered a DNA test that could destroy Valerie’s claim.
