108

The air in the room became thick, so much so that it seemed impossible to breathe. Richard held the gun with trembling fingers, his eyes fixed on Natalia, who had stepped forward, covering Nathan with her own body.

The woman was shaking, but her determination was stronger than any fear.

“What... did you say?” he muttered, incredulous.

Natalia swallowed hard, but she would not back down.

“If you want to kill someone, kill me,” she said firmly, although her voice broke at the end. “You will never touch our son again.”

Richard's jaw tightened. A strange pain gripped his chest, an unbearable weight that suffocated him from within. His mind screamed that he should pull the trigger, end this charade, take back what he believed was his. But his heart... his heart betrayed him every time he looked at Natalia.

“Why... why do you always choose to turn against me?” he growled, his eyes glazed over, unable to move. “Damn it, Natalia... I can't.” You don't understand what I've been through..."

“And you think I've had a great time?” Natalia replied, her voice breaking. “I was isolated for a long time, and it's as if no time has passed. But here I am, struggling to understand all this. So please...”

Richard clenched his fists at his sides. They had both suffered, and all because of that damn Jarek Strong. He was the one who should be begging, but no, the damn old man was standing there, looking at him with hatred and disgust, as if he were worthless.

The silence was suddenly broken by an unexpected sound. A sharp, clear cry, which multiplied seconds later into a chorus of babies. The cries echoed off the walls of the mansion, piercing the souls of everyone present.

Suzanne turned pale, her breathing quickened.

“No...” she whispered with trembling lips. “It can't be... The nanny... she... she was supposed to come back late... How long have we been here?”

A sense of chaos took hold of the room. Richard opened his eyes in confusion, staring at the ceiling, as if the cries were a mirage. Natalia clenched her fists, a tremor running through her body. And Nathan, filled with contained rage, stepped forward to stand between his mother and the threat.

“You're not going to touch her,” said the boy in a firm voice, deeper than normal, charged with a courage he didn't know he had. “I'm not going to lose my mom again. If you want to hurt her, you'll have to get past me first.”

The statement cut like a knife. Richard looked at him and let out a bitter, sarcastic laugh that echoed macabrely in the room.

“The Strongs... you're truly fascinating,” he snorted, lowering his gun slightly, but still keeping it pointed at him. “Always together, always sacrificing yourselves for each other. But the rest... the rest you crush, destroy, condemn to misery and prison... Just like you did to me.”

His voice broke, like a roar choked with pain and resentment. Natalia closed her eyes, swallowing hard, knowing that every word was a reminder of the open wound that never healed in him.

Suzanne, meanwhile, bit her lip in desperation. Tears were already streaming down her cheeks.

“Richard...” she said in a whisper. Please... let me see my babies. Just for a moment... I need to know they're okay.

He turned his face toward her, with the hardness of someone who does not allow himself to hesitate.

“No,” he replied curtly, cutting off the conversation with that single word. “Any distraction at this moment would cost me too much. And I... I have nothing left to lose.”

The echo of his words resonated like a final sentence. Natalia felt a chill run down her spine as Nathan stood firm, determined not to back down. Outside, the babies' cries continued, growing louder, a cruel reminder of the innocence that was at risk in the midst of this confrontation.

“Please, they need me...” Suzanne replied.

“I said no,” the man snapped, making her flinch. “No one is moving from here.”

Suzanne looked at him pleadingly, but he was unwilling to give in.

Nathan was upset by this. He couldn't believe that this stubborn man had no compassion, not even for his own grandchildren. Had prison really turned him into such a cold-hearted person, or had he always been like this? His head was spinning.

“Don't be so cold-hearted, they're just babies,” he snapped angrily, feeling frustrated. “Let her go... Dad.”

Suzanne looked at him in astonishment, unable to comprehend how Nathan dared to call him that at a time like this. Natalia, standing next to her, was also speechless, her face clouded with disbelief, although there was a hint of pain in her eyes.

“Dad?” Jarek repeated, raising his voice with a roar that carried his pent-up rage. “Don't ever call him that again, Nathan! That man doesn't deserve that title. He's a criminal, a traitor, someone who has done nothing but destroy everything he touches.”

The boy clenched his fists tightly, his eyes glazed over with tension, but he stood firm in the face of the reproach.

“But he's still my father,” Nathan replied in a broken voice, though full of stubbornness. “No matter what he's done, I can't ignore the bond that unites us.”

The silence in the room became heavy, as if the air itself refused to flow. Natalia looked down for a moment, unable to bear the harshness of the confrontation, while Suzanne bit her lip, unsure whether to intervene.

Jarek took a step toward him, staring into Nathan's eyes as if he wanted to tear that idea out of him.

“Don't you understand, boy? That man would never protect you. He doesn't even know what it means to be a father. And you... you're trying to appeal to a heart that doesn't exist!”

Nathan swallowed hard, fighting back the tears that threatened to spill over. He raised his voice in desperation, pointing at the man chained by the ghosts of his past.

“Maybe not to you, but to me he is. Even if he looks at me with suspicion, even if he rejects me, I need to believe that somewhere inside him there is something good... something that can respond to my voice.”

The man remained motionless, watching him coldly. His eyes were two dark, unfathomable wells, incapable of revealing any emotion.

There was distrust, yes, but also a fleeting, almost imperceptible glimmer, as if that plea had touched a crack in his armor.

But before he could say anything, an incredulous, excited voice was heard.

“Wait... Babies? What babies?” asked Natalia, her eyes wide.

“Nathan and Suzanne's children,” said Jarek with a small smile. “Your grandchildren, Nat.”

Her face lit up, everyone could see it, even Richard, who grimaced as he noticed the babies' cries beginning to increase.

“Unbelievable, I'm a grandmother,” the woman smiled, tears in her eyes.

“Am I a grandfather too?” Richard thought, with a small lump in his throat.