Calvin’s voice dropped, but it somehow felt even sharper. "Do you think I wanted to do this?" he said, gazing back at Dr. Chelsea, “Jerome—your ex, Kelsey's real father—was ready to kill Kelsey before she even took her first steps! I saved her life!"
Dr. Chelsea flinched as if she’d been slapped. For the first time since this nightmare started, she looked… shaken. "W-What? How did you know what he was planning?”
Calvin exhaled slowly, his gaze dropping to the floor. "Because I used to work for him."
The words sucked the air out of the room. I sat up straighter, my heart pounding.
“You what?!” Dr. Chelsea’s stern voice echoed.
He looked at me then, his expression softening just enough to make it worse. "It was a long time ago. Before Kelsey was born. I worked for Jerome, handling… things. Business. But I left the moment I realized what he was planning to do."
"Business?" Dr. Chelsea said bitterly. "You mean his drug empire? His mafia dealings? You worked for him, Calvin, and now you expect us to trust you? After everything?"
"I don’t expect you to trust me now. Yeah, I lied to you," he admitted, his voice quieter now. "But I do expect you to understand. Kelsey was never safe with Jerome. And when I found out Don Lucas,” he looked at me, “your grandfather wanted you to inherit the family’s fortune, I knew it was only a matter of time before Jerome acted. Jerome was Don Lucas's son. He couldn't accept that he was not the heir."
The words hung in the air like a noose. I hugged my knees tighter, my mind racing. "So, let me get this straight," I said, my voice trembling. "My biological father is some mafia prince who doesn’t want me alive because my grandfather wanted me to inherit… what? Blood money? A drug empire?!"
Calvin nodded grimly. "It’s more than just money, Kelsey. It’s power. Influence. And yes, the darker side of things. Jerome sees you as a threat to everything he’s built."
I looked at Dr. Chelsea, searching for some kind of anchor in all this. Her face was pale, her hands trembling as she pressed them to her temples. "I-I don’t even know what to say," she whispered. "don’t even know how… to fix this."
"You can’t fix it," Calvin said bluntly. "But you can protect her. We can protect her. Together."
"Protect me from what, exactly?" I demanded, standing up. "This isn’t my fight! I didn’t ask for any of this!"