Marcus pulled his daughter and the young waitress into a warm, protective embrace on the floor.
His heart was pounding hard against his chest as he processed the unbelievable words he just heard.
For two long years, he believed Hannah Carter had abandoned his family after his late wife's passing.
Hannah had been his wife's trusted personal assistant and the legal heir to a massive real estate fortune.
When the car crash happened, Hannah had stayed at the hospital until the doctors said Sofia was stable.
Then, she had mysteriously vanished without saying a single word to Marcus or leaving a phone number.
Marcus stared at the young woman sitting on the cold marble floor in a simple server uniform.
Father: My oldest son Julian told me you took your money and left the state completely.
Hannah: Julian came to my apartment right after the funeral with two heavy security guards.
Hannah: He threatened to take everything I owned if I ever tried to contact you again.
Marcus felt a cold wave of white-hot anger rush through his entire body as he listened.
Julian was his thirty-year-old son from his first marriage, a man obsessed with money and power.
Marcus had given Julian control over the family trust fund and several large corporate legal accounts recently.
He never suspected his own eldest son could be capable of such terrible, calculated cruelty.
Father: Why would Julian threaten you? You were like a second mother to little Sofia.
Hannah: Your late wife left me legal custody paperwork for Sofia in case of an emergency.
Hannah: She also left me the land deed to the Ashwood Bridge property in her final will.
Marcus sat back on his heels, completely stunned by the shocking revelations spilling out of her mouth.
The Ashwood Bridge estate was worth over twenty million dollars in prime commercial land space.
It was the grand prize that Julian had been trying to get his hands on for years.
If Hannah held the legal rights to the estate, Julian stood to lose millions in potential profits.
Sofia rubbed her small face against Hannah's white jacket, refusing to let go of her hands.
Sofia: Daddy, she used to sing to me every night when my legs hurt.
Sofia: Big brother Julian told me she ran away because she didn't love us anymore.
Marcus felt tears sting his eyes as he wrapped his large hand over his daughter's tiny fingers.
The terrible lie had kept his poor daughter trapped in that pink wheelchair out of sheer heartbreak.
Father: Julian lied to all of us to protect his own greed and secure his inheritance.
Hannah: I had to take this catering job just to catch a tiny glimpse of Sofia today.
Father: You will never have to work as a servant in this house ever again, Hannah.
Marcus stood up slowly and helped Hannah stand up off the hard, cold marble floor.
He looked toward the double doors of the mansion hall, where his son Julian was stepping inside.