Chapter 129: DON’T DRAW ATTENTION TO YOURSELF

Chapter 131

REN

We have been at the hotel for a little over an hour now.

By the time we arrived, Theo was already exhausted. Lumi took him into the bathroom, helped him have his bath, and changed him into the pyjamas she ordered, while I spoke with the hotel staff about dinner and the arrangements for our stay.

I took my bath afterwards, and when I came out, Lumi had already settled Theo into bed.

He had fallen asleep almost immediately.

She had also taken her bath and changed into something comfortable, but unlike the rest of us, she hadn’t settled down.

She had been walking around the room for the last twenty minutes.

I sat on the sofa, watching her move from the bedroom to the sitting area, then back again. Occasionally, she would stop and look at her phone before putting it down without checking anything.

Darrell had taken care of everything concerning the DNA test. He had collected the necessary samples from Chloe and Theo, and the laboratory had agreed to process them urgently. There was no reason for Lumi to go back to the hospital, and I had made sure of that.

I knew what hospitals meant to her after everything she had been through. The thought of taking her back there, making her sit in another waiting room while strangers handled something concerning her son, was enough to make me insist we come here instead.

She hadn’t argued for long.

Now, however, she seemed to have enough energy to walk around the entire hotel.

I watched her turn towards the window again.

"Lumi." She didn’t answer.

I pushed myself off the sofa and walked towards her. When I reached her, I placed both hands on her shoulders.

"Come and sit down." She looked at me.

"Ren, I’m trying."

"Then try sitting down for a while." She let out a frustrated breath.

"I’m serious. I’m trying, but I can’t help it." I guided her towards the sofa, but she remained standing.

"I know the result isn’t going to change anything between me and Theo," she continued. "I know that, Ren. No matter what the report says, I’m still his mother. I’ve raised him. I’ve loved him. None of that is going to disappear."

"I know."

"But I can’t stop thinking about it. What if Chloe really is his mother? What if everything Sienna said is true? What if there’s another part of this story we haven’t discovered yet?" I pulled her gently against me.

"One thing at a time, baby." She rested her forehead against my chest.

"I’m trying to calm down."

"I can see that." She gave a small, humourless laugh.

"You’re making fun of me."

"I’m not. I’m telling you that you don’t have to force yourself to be calm just because you know what the result means." Her arms slipped around my waist, and I held her close.

For a while, neither of us spoke. I could feel her breathing gradually settle, and I brushed my hand over her back.

Then my phone vibrated.

Lumi immediately pulled away. "Is that Darrell?" I looked at her.

"Is the result out?" she asked, her voice suddenly urgent.

I shook my head. "I haven’t checked yet."

"Please, Ren." I took the phone from my pocket and looked at the screen.

It was a message from Darrell.

*The laboratory has sent the report. I’m forwarding it now.*

Another notification appeared almost immediately.

I opened the document. The first thing I noticed was the conclusion at the bottom of the report.

I read it once, then again.

Chloe was Theo’s biological mother. The probability of maternity was 99.99%.

I lowered the phone. Lumi was staring at me.

"Ren?" I looked at her.

"It’s Chloe." Her lips parted, but no words came out.

I stepped closer. "The result confirms that Chloe is Theo’s biological mother."

For a moment, she didn’t move. Then her face crumpled.

I caught her before she could step away and pulled her into my arms as the first sob escaped her.

"Oh, baby." She shook her head against my chest.

"No." I held her tighter.

"No, no..."

Her voice broke, and she began crying harder. I didn’t try to stop her. I simply kept my arms around her, allowing her to release everything she had been holding since we left the courthouse.

I knew she had expected the result to be possible. She had said as much herself.

But knowing something could be true and seeing it confirmed were two different things.

She had spent years believing Sienna’s original story about a child whose parents couldn’t care for him. Then Sienna had turned around and claimed Theo as her own when she wanted to destroy Lumi’s.

Now the report had confirmed that neither Sienna nor Callum was his biological parent.

I rubbed Lumi’s back. "Let it out. I’m here."

She held onto my shirt, crying until her breathing became uneven. I guided her towards the sofa and sat with her, keeping her close while she slowly regained control.

When she finally lifted her head, her cheeks were wet.

"He’s just a little boy, Ren."

"I know."

"He doesn’t deserve any of this." I wiped her cheeks with my thumb.

"No, he doesn’t."

"Do you know what hurts the most?" She swallowed, trying to steady her voice. "I wasn’t even this hurt when I found out Sienna was my sister." I listened.

"At first, I couldn’t believe it. I was angry, confused, and I didn’t know what to do with the information. But one thing made it bearable." She paused, and her eyes filled again.

"I kept thinking that if she was my sister, then Theo was my nephew. He was still connected to me. I thought that was something good I could hold on to, even after everything she had done." Her voice cracked.

"But it was all a lie, Ren. Everything. She wasn’t his mother. Callum wasn’t his father. And the story she gave me when we adopted him wasn’t even true." I pressed a kiss to her forehead.

"I know." She shook her head.

"How could she do that?" I didn’t have an answer that would make any sense.

"How could she take a baby from another woman and use him like that? How could she watch me raise him, knowing what she had done?" Her fingers tightened around mine.

"I still love him, Ren. I love Theo so much. But it breaks my heart that his life started like this. I don’t even know what else to feel." I brought her hand to my lips.

"You don’t have to choose one feeling. You can love him and still be hurt by what happened." She looked at me.

"I want to protect him."

"You already do."

"No." She shook her head. "I mean from everyone. From Sienna, from anyone who thinks they can come into his life and use him. I don’t want anybody hurting him again. I’ll protect him from everyone who has done this to him. I won’t allow anyone to come close to him just because they suddenly remember they’re connected to him." I understood what she meant.

But I also knew we would have to handle everything carefully, especially with the legal implications of the result.

"You won’t have to face any of it alone." She nodded, then looked towards Theo bedroom.

"He’s sleeping."

"Yes."

"Did he wake up?"

"No. He was exhausted." She stared at the door for a moment before turning back to me.

"I want to see Chloe." I frowned slightly.

"Chloe?"

"Yes. I want to see her." I studied her face.

"Do you want me to come with you?" She shook her head.

"I want to go alone."

"Lumi..."

"Please, Ren. I need to speak to her." I considered arguing, but I could see that she had already made up her mind.

"Alright. But I want to go with you." She touched my cheek.

"I know, but I need to do this myself." I nodded slowly.

She leaned forward and kissed me. It was brief, but I understood what she was trying to tell me. She needed me to trust her. I returned the kiss before she pulled away.

She stood and walked towards the wardrobe.

I remained where I was, watching her change out of her comfortable clothes and into something suitable for going out. She picked up her phone, checked it, and slipped it into her handbag.

I hoped she would change her mind.

Not because I didn’t trust her, but because I knew how much she was hurting, and I didn’t know what seeing Chloe would do to her.

But Lumi had never been someone who made a decision and abandoned it simply because the situation became difficult.

When she was ready, she walked back towards me. I was standing near the sofa.

She stopped in front of me and placed her hands on my chest.

"Watch over Theo for me."

"I will."

"I won’t be long." I looked into her eyes.

"Call me if you need anything."

"I will." She kissed me again, then pulled away.

"Take care of my boy." I gave a small nod.

"Always." She turned and walked towards the door.

I watched her leave, and when the door closed behind her, I remained standing there.

For several seconds, I considered going after her.

I could easily catch up with her, insist on accompanying her, and refuse to let her walk into whatever conversation she had planned without me.

But that wasn’t what she needed.

She had asked to go alone, and if I wanted her to trust me with her decisions, I had to give her the same trust.

Besides, Theo was asleep in the adjoining room. I couldn’t leave him alone.

I glanced towards the bedroom door before reaching for my phone.

I called Darrell. He answered almost immediately.

"Bro."

"Where are you?"

"Close to the hotel. I was waiting to hear from you."

"Good. Lumi just left." There was a brief pause.

"Do you want me to follow her?"

"Yes. I’m sending you her location now." I opened the location on my phone and forwarded it to him.

"Follow her, but keep your distance. I don’t want her noticing you."

"Understood."

"Don’t listen to her conversation. Don’t interfere. I only want you to make sure she’s safe."

"Alright." I paused before continuing.

"And Darrell?"

"Yeah?"

"If you see her doing something she shouldn’t, don’t draw attention to yourself. If she gets into an argument or starts acting out, don’t interfere unless her safety is genuinely at risk. Make sure nobody sees you, and call me if the situation becomes dangerous." Darrell was quiet for a moment.

"Understood. I’ll keep an eye on her."

"Good."

I ended the call and looked at the location on my screen.

I didn’t know where Lumi was going or what she intended to say to Chloe.

I only knew she needed to see the woman whose name was now written on Theo’s DNA report.

I slipped my phone into my pocket and walked towards the adjoining room.

Theo was still asleep, his little hand resting beside his face.

I stood by his bed for a moment, then carefully pulled the blanket over him.

"Sleep well, little man." I straightened and looked towards the door.

Lumi would be back. And until then, I would make sure our son was safe.