Maya's POV
When I attempted to unlock the door of my new apartment, the key broke in two. I muttered, "Perfect," as I gazed at the shattered metal in my trembling hand. "Just perfect."
For ten minutes, I stood in the hallway, trying to summon the bravery to enter. It was my first apartment in a decade. The first place I had all to myself. I was now unable to even open the door.
I heard footsteps behind me just as I was ready to call the landlord. My heart pounded at the sound of heavy footsteps.
"Need help with that?"
I nearly screamed as I spun around. At the end of the hallway stood Marcus Webb, smiling and holding a cup of coffee as if we were old friends getting together for lunch.
"What are you doing here?" I muttered.
"Maya, this building belongs to me. Did you not know?"
The broken key clattered on the floor after falling out of my hand. This building belonged to Marcus, of course. Naturally, the only apartment I could afford was his.
Marcus said, "Calm down," as he approached. "I'm not here to harm you. I'm here to assist."
"What do you need help with?"
"With your door." Like it was nothing, he took out a master key and unlocked my apartment. "These elderly locks can be challenging. You must precisely jiggle them."
I could see inside my new house as the door swung open. It was small. It was inexpensive. However, it was meant to belong to me. But now I knew Marcus Webb owned it.
Marcus held the door open and said, "After you."
I had no choice but to accompany him inside, even though I didn't want to. Now, this was my apartment. There was nowhere else for me to go.
Compared to the photos, the apartment was smaller. Only one room, with a small bathroom and kitchen. However, there was a window that let in sunlight, and I briefly felt optimistic. Until Marcus shut the door after us.
He looked around and remarked, "Nice place." "Cozy, but small."
"Marcus, what do you want?"
"I'd like to speak. Concerning Ethan."
My blood froze. "What about Ethan?"
Marcus took a seat in the room's lone chair and settled in. "Maya, I'm sure you saw the DNA report. Did Alex not show it to you?"
I was unable to talk. I had the sensation that my throat was closing.
"Ten years," Marcus uttered softly. "I've watched David raise my son for ten years."
"Ethan is not your son."
"DNA says otherwise."
"You are not a father because of your DNA!" I let the words fly out of me. "You become a father by being there every day. You become a father by reading bedtime stories. You become a father by wiping away tears."
"Maya, where are you right now? The mother should be wiping away his tears, but where is she?"
I felt like I was slapped by the words. since he was correct. I had sacrificed my son. I had deserted the world's most important job.
"David made me choose," I muttered.
"I told David to make you choose, so he did."
I gazed at Marcus. "What?"
"The Jessica affair. the dispute over custody. Your choice to part with Ethan. Everything was planned by me."
The room began to spin. "Why?"
"Maya, I needed you broken. I desperately needed you. I wanted you to have nothing left to lose."
"For what?"
Marcus got up and moved toward the window. "Alex is concerned about you. More than he ought to. Additionally, those who are concerned about things tend to make foolish choices."
"You're trying to reach Alex by using me."
"I'm destroying Alex with you. similar to how he destroyed James."
"James wasn't destroyed by Alex! You did."
For the first time, I noticed genuine rage in Marcus's eyes as he turned around. "James lacked strength. Losing his wife to a better man was too much for him to bear."
"You destroyed his life!"
"I provided for his wife's needs. In the same way that I'll provide for Ethan's needs."
My heart stopped beating. "What are you talking about?"
"Maya, I'm talking about reclaiming my son. I'm referring to being the father I ought to have been from the start."
"That is not possible. David is in charge."
Marcus chuckled. "Maya, David is going to jail. For months, the FBI has been keeping an eye on his money laundering scheme. He will be taken into custody early tomorrow."
The room swayed. "What?"
"Additionally, Jessica won't be able to care for Ethan by herself once David is imprisoned. She will require assistance. She will require a wealthy and well-connected individual."
"She won't allow you to get close to Ethan."
"When I reveal to her that I am his biological father, she will. When I offer to cover everything, she will. When I tell her that foster care is an option, she will."
I was having trouble breathing. "This whole thing was planned by you."
"Every single component. The arrest of David. Jessica's fear. Your despair. Alex's affections for you."
"But why?"
Marcus approached me. "Because Alex stole a business deal from me ten years ago. A fifty million dollar deal. And he ruined my reputation when I attempted to defend myself. He ensured that nobody in this city would collaborate with me."
"You destroyed my marriage, then? My son was taken by you? You ruined James's life?"
"I took the necessary action."
"James committed suicide!"
"James made his decision. similar to how you made your decision. Alex is about to make a decision."
"What choice?"
Marcus showed me a picture on his phone. Alex was seated in his office. However, the picture was captured through a window outside the structure.
"Maya, your boyfriend is going to lose everything. His company. His standing. His liberty."
"What are you talking about?"
"I've been giving the FBI information about his business. The same type of information that will land David in jail."
"Alex isn't laundering money, though!"
"No, but he has been collaborating with businesses that do. Businesses I ensured he would collaborate with."
I was ill. "You set him up."
"I caused him to fail. similar to how he set me up for failure a decade ago."
"Alex would never collaborate with criminals."
"If he believed it would help him save the woman he loves, he would."
Marcus pulled out another picture from his phone. This one showed a man in a suit shaking hands with Alex.
"Just after you left the coffee shop yesterday, this picture was taken. Alex asked for a loan over the phone. A large loan. so he could assist you in finding a capable attorney and defending your claim to Ethan's custody."
My heart shattered into a million fragments. Marcus was using it to ruin my son, while Alex was attempting to assist me in getting him back.
"Maya, the man Alex borrowed money from is a criminal. He has been under FBI surveillance for years. They're now also keeping an eye on Alex."
"This must end."
"I am able to halt it. However, you must first do something for me."
"What?"
Marcus looked me in the eye and put his phone away. "I need your assistance to get Ethan back. And you must assist me in destroying Alex."
"I won't do it."
"You'll. Because Alex will be imprisoned if you don't. Additionally, Ethan is placed in foster care with unloving strangers."
I wanted to strike him. I felt like screaming. But since he was correct, there was nothing I could do. I would permanently lose both Alex and Ethan if I didn't assist Marcus.
"What do you want me to do?" I muttered.
Marcus grinned. "Return to Alex, please. Tell him you've changed your mind about us, please. I want you to earn his full trust."
"And then?"
"After that, I want you to assist me in preparing him for the most significant setback of his life."
I looked at Marcus, searching for a way out of this situation. However, there wasn't one.
"I need time to think."
"You have until the tomorrow's morning. At that point, David is taken into custody. Everything changes at that point."
Marcus approached the door and paused. "Maya, too? You should be aware of one more thing."
"What?"
"I didn't pick you for college because you were attractive. I didn't like you for that reason."
"Then why?"
The door was opened by Marcus. "Because I was aware that Alex had feelings for you. He was always talking about you, even back then. At that party, I kissed you and made sure a photo was taken."
My legs nearly failed me. "You've spent ten years planning this?"
"Since Alex stole my future, I've been preparing for this."
Marcus entered the corridor. "Maya, sweet dreams. You can decide who you love more tomorrow."
I heard his footsteps leaving as he shut the door behind him. I collapsed on my small apartment's floor and began to sob. Because my son's whole life had been a lie, and I had just discovered this. And I would have to decide between saving Ethan and saving Alex tomorrow. However, I was unable to save both. Marcus Webb was aware that I would put my son before everything else. Even over the one man who truly loved me in the past.