Elena held the small paper tightly in her trembling right hand.
She stood inside the grand glass lobby of the city council building.
Her young son Leo wore his favorite bright blue shirt for this visit.
He held her left hand and looked around at the towering marble walls.
Leo: Is this where the important man works, Mom?
Elena: Yes, sweetie, this is where your father works.
Elena adjusted the collar of Leo's shirt with a faint smile.
She had waited seven long years to bring Leo to this specific room.
She took a deep breath to steady her rapidly beating heart.
A tall security guard walked over to them with a cold expression.
Security Guard: Ma'am, you cannot stand in the main foyer without an appointment.
Elena: Senator David Vance is expecting me today.
The guard checked his electronic tablet and gave a short nod.
He pointed toward a pair of heavy mahogany double doors down the hall.
Elena guided her son down the polished floor with gentle steps.
Every step made her think back to the happy summer they once shared.
David had promised her a family before his political campaign began.
Then he disappeared, leaving her to raise their child entirely alone.
Now he was running for governor with millions of dollars in backing.
Elena pushed open the double doors and stepped into the wide office.
David Vance stood near his walnut desk in a tailored dark suit.
He wore an American flag pin on his expensive lapel.
He turned around and stared at Elena with harsh, unblinking eyes.
David: You should not have come here, Elena.
Elena: Look at him, David! Look at your boy!
Leo looked up at the tall man with wide, innocent eyes.
Leo: You're my real dad?
David: I don't have a son.
The words fell like ice in the warm and sunny room.
Elena dropped to her knees on the smooth marble floor.
She pulled Leo close to her side as tears built in her eyes.
Elena: Please, just take a look at his birth certificate!
David stepped forward and grabbed the paper from her shaking hand.
He did not even read the official seal stamped at the bottom.
He crumpled the paper into a small ball in his tight fist.
David: Get away from me, you impostors!
He raised his arm and gestured toward the open hallway behind them.
Leo stumbled back as Elena shielded him with her whole body.
The young boy scraped his knee against the hard floor beat.
Leo: Why don't you want me?
David turned his back on them without saying another single word.
He walked straight out through the doors and shut them tightly behind him.