The Son I Never Had
A woman’s sharp voice demanded, “Is this Leo? My Aiden came home yesterday with a full water bottle. Did he not drink?”
It took me a second—Aiden, the new intern in the CEO’s office. I politely replied, “It was hectic before the holiday. I’ll remind him to drink water when we’re back.”
Five minutes later, she called again. “Aiden’s eyes are dry. Remind him to do eye exercises.” Exhausted, I hung up quickly.
It rang instantly. “How dare you hang up? Aiden must rinse with 90°F water after lunch!” she shrieked.
I snapped. “We hired an intern, not a god! He’s 26, not 6. Chain him at home if you’re so worried!”
Before sunrise, I was summoned to the office. A woman with red lipstick stormed over and slapped me. “My Aiden is CEO Byron Vance’s son,” she yelled. “It’s your privilege to serve him!”
I froze. Because I’m Byron Vance. And I had no idea I was married—or had a 26-year-old son.
1
The sharp sting exploded across my cheek, and a firestorm of rage ignited in my chest, threatening to burn me to ash.
I lifted my eyes and gave the woman a cold, deliberate once-over.
Impressive.
In my entire life, no one had ever dared to lay a hand on Byron Vance.
I was intensely curious to see who, exactly, had the gall to impersonate me—and invent a wife and son for me out of thin air.
My stare seemed to infuriate her further. “What are you looking at?” she screeched. “You’re a lowlife. You think you have the right to glare at me? I ought to gouge your eyes out right now!”
My manager, Mr. Davies, rushed over and barked at me, “Leo! Are you mute? Apologize! Now!”
He turned to the woman, his face instantly transforming into a mask of fawning servitude. “This is Mrs. Janine Vance, the CEO’s wife and young Mr. Aiden’s mother! If she’s not happy, you can kiss your job goodbye!”
After chewing me out, he turned back to her, bowing slightly. “Mrs. Vance, please, calm down. This worthless new hire doesn’t know the rules! For his disrespect, I’ll personally make sure he pays dearly today!”
Janine lifted her chin, a contemptuous snort escaping her nostrils. “Does this branch office not vet its hires anymore? You’ll let any riff-raff off the street in here.”
“You’re absolutely right, ma’am.” Mr. Davies wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead, practically groveling. “It’s my failure as a manager. I’m so sorry you had to endure this…”
“That’s enough,” Janine said, clearly savoring the groveling. She glanced between us, her eyes holding the same detached interest one might have for an ant just before crushing it.
“I’m not an unreasonable person,” she said, her gaze landing back on me. “For Mr. Davies’ sake, we’ll let this slide.” Her tone shifted, becoming imperious. “You. From now on, you will be personally responsible for my Aiden.”
“You make sure he’s comfortable, and I’ll make sure you’re rewarded.”
Mr. Davies immediately chimed in like a trained dog. “Did you hear that, Leo? This is the opportunity of a lifetime! A chance to personally attend to the Crown Prince! Your ancestors must be smiling down on you! Thank Mrs. Vance right now!”
Janine nodded, satisfied. She pulled a stack of papers from her purse and began issuing her decrees.
“My Aiden has a delicate stomach, so you’ll be cooking all his meals. The food out there is filthy. All ingredients must be certified organic, and his water must be from Fiji. Anything else gives him an upset stomach!”
“Also!” she continued without taking a breath, “Aiden must get up and move for ten minutes every hour. You will give him a full-body massage, five minutes per set, with moderate pressure. And his white shirts must be hand-washed, never machine-dried, or he’ll break out in a rash…”
She rattled on and on, while Mr. Davies stood by, nodding and bowing as if he were receiving holy scripture.
The longer I listened, the colder my smile became.
“Hah.”
A single, sharp laugh echoed through the dead-silent office.
Janine’s condescending expression froze. “What are you laughing at?” she demanded, her voice turning dangerously low.
I slowly raised my head, locking my eyes on hers. “I came here to work,” I said, enunciating every word. “Not to babysit a mentally deficient man-child.”
“Is he paralyzed? Does he need me to hold it for him when he pees? If he’s that incapable of basic functions, hire a nurse. The fact that you insist he work when he’s that handicapped… it’s a true inspiration, really. A testament to the human spirit.”
The air went still.
Mr. Davies’ face turned white, the hand he pointed at me trembling. “Leo! Are you… are you insane?”
Janine was shaking with fury, jabbing a finger at my nose. “What did you say? You dare repeat that! Do you know how many people are on their knees, begging me for a chance to take care of my Aiden? I’m giving you an honor! A born servant like you was put on this earth to shine our shoes!”
Her little speech was so absurd I had to laugh.
“Ma’am, what century did you just crawl out of? And on your way out of the crypt, did the coffin lid happen to slam on your head? It would explain why you’re so spectacularly stupid.”
“You—!” Janine clutched her chest, her ragged breaths echoing in the silence.
Mr. Davies scrambled to her side. “Mrs. Vance, please! Don’t waste your anger on this trash!”
She shoved him away, her face a mask of fury. “Fine! Just fine! You want to play tough? You’re fired! Get out! Now!”
I shrugged nonchalantly. “Fine by me.”
As I turned to leave, I deliberately slowed my pace, glanced back, and added with a small, knowing smile, “I’m just afraid you’ll be crying and begging me to come back later.”
“Beg you?” Janine burst out laughing as if I’d told the joke of the century. “Who do you think you are? I said you’re fired, but I never said you could walk out of here!”
Her eyes turned to ice. She shot a look at Mr. Davies.
He immediately stepped in front of me, playing the loyal attack dog. “Security!” he bellowed toward the door. “Get in here! Block the exit! Don’t let this bastard escape!”
Several guards rushed in, surrounding me.
“You think you can just stir up trouble and walk away?”
I scanned their faces, my fingers curling into fists at my sides.
Behind me, Janine’s voice dripped with smug satisfaction. “Scared now? Get on your knees. Apologize properly. Three times, with your head to the floor. Or I’ll make sure you leave Vance Industries horizontally.”
“Make me kneel?” I slowly turned back around, a low chuckle escaping my lips as I took in her triumphant, distorted face. “You and what army?”
Mr. Davies shoved my shoulder hard. “Leo! What is that attitude? You think you can act like this after disrespecting Mrs. Vance? You’re out of control!”
He shot Janine a placating smile. “A punk like you needs to be taught a lesson! Mrs. Vance is telling you to kneel for your own good, so you learn not to cross the wrong people in the future! She is the queen of this company! If you make her happy today, you’ll never have to worry about a job again!”
A classic masterclass in manipulation. If I were any other employee, that combination of threats and promises might have been enough to make my legs buckle.
Too bad for them.
They still hadn't figured it out.
They were the ones who had crossed the wrong person.
And that person was me. Byron Vance.
I brushed Mr. Davies’ hand off my shoulder and dusted off a speck of non-existent lint.
“Don’t try that with me,” I said calmly. “If you think I’m going to bend, you’re dreaming.”
At my defiance, Janine’s eyes grew even more venomous. “So, you’ve chosen the hard way. A dog that doesn’t obey needs to be beaten. Once it’s broken, it’ll learn how to wag its tail.”
Mr. Davies understood immediately. With a nod from him, the security guards lunged at me from all sides.
I was outnumbered.
There were too many of them, and I couldn't fend them all off.
In the chaos, a stun baton jabbed hard into the small of my back.
A searing jolt of electricity and pain shot through my entire body. My knees buckled, but I dug my nails into my palms, forcing myself to stay upright.
“Make him kneel!” Janine commanded.
Two guards grabbed my shoulders, forcing me to the ground.
I gritted my teeth against the agony, forcing the words out. “You… are… not… worthy!”
In the struggle, I managed to pull my wallet from my pocket. With the last of my strength, I whipped out my ID and slapped it across Janine’s face.
“Take a good look! See who the hell I really am!”
The plastic card shattered her arrogant expression and clattered to the floor.
Stunned, Janine bent down and picked it up.
When she saw the name and photograph, her eyes widened for a second, then she exploded into a fit of piercing, manic laughter.
“Hahahaha! Byron Vance? Your name is Byron Vance, too? You? With that pathetic look on your face? You dare impersonate my husband? You idiot!”
I spit out a mouthful of blood and sneered, “I am the CEO of Vance Industries. The sole heir to the Vance family. The one and only Byron Vance.”
The laughter died on her lips, her face turning cold. “So that’s your game! You got a fake ID from some back-alley printer and you think you can impersonate my husband? You must have a death wish!”
She quickly dialed a number and put it on speaker. “Honey, I’m at your branch office. There’s some lunatic here with a fake ID claiming to be you. You need to get down here and handle this!”
A deep, booming male voice immediately answered.
“Outrageous! Don’t worry, darling. I’m on my way!”
That voice…
It was familiar. My stomach dropped, but for the life of me, I couldn’t place it.
Before I could speak, Mr. Davies kicked me sharply behind the knee.
“Leo! Have you lost your mind? Your name is Leo Shaw, not Mr. Vance! Apologize to Mrs. Vance right now, or when the real CEO gets here, this whole company will go down with you!”
Pain shot through my leg, and I stumbled to the floor. But I forced my head up, my gaze like a knife. “I’ll say it one more time. I am Byron Vance. Headquarters is preparing for a merger, and I came here undercover to see how this branch really operates.”
My words were met with even more scorn from Janine. “Spoken like true gutter trash. You can’t even spin a convincing lie! You’ve read too many fantasy novels, haven’t you? Started to think you’re the main character?”
The smile vanished from her face. “If you’re going to be a con artist, you should pick an easier target. You don’t poke the bear. Today, I’m going to teach you what real power looks like.”
She raised a hand, her voice chillingly cold. “Beat him. Beat him until he can’t stand.”
“If he dies or ends up crippled, Vance Industries will cover it. Whoever hits him the hardest gets to be the new manager of this office!”
The guards swarmed me, fists and feet raining down like hail.
Pain and humiliation washed over me, but more than anything, I felt a sense of endless absurdity.
Idiots! A bunch of complete idiots!
How could anyone believe this charade? A true legacy family would never behave with such crude, theatrical foolishness.
I fought back with everything I had left, roaring, “I dare you! Touch me again! I’m calling the police! Let them verify who I am!”
Perhaps it was the raw fury in my eyes, but for a moment, they actually hesitated.
All except Janine.
Her laughter grew louder, more unhinged. “The police? Oh, they’ll come, alright. They’ll come to arrest you. I was going to have you thrown in jail for fraud anyway. But first, you’re going to pay the price for your arrogance.”
She leaned in close, her eyes filled with malice. “You have a filthy mouth. I’m going to knock your teeth out, one by one. Let’s see you talk smart after that.”
“You dare!” I snarled, my eyes blazing with a terrifying light. “For what you’ve done to me today, the Vance family will never let you go.”
My voice was quiet, but it was heavy with absolute certainty.
Janine just raised an eyebrow. “The Vance family? Too bad for you, that belongs to my husband. And you? You’re just a pathetic loser with delusions of grandeur.”
A flicker of cruel delight crossed her face. She slowly lifted her sharp-heeled shoe and aimed it at my face. “Better luck in the next life.”
Psycho! This woman is a complete psycho!
How could she be so reckless? Was I actually going to die here?
Just as I braced for the impact, the office door was kicked open with a tremendous crash.
When I saw who was standing there, my eyes shot wide open in disbelief.
It was him.
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