The hospital administrator pointed at my feverish seven-month-old in front of the entire emergency room and said, “Perhaps you should have chosen his father more carefully.”

The Manhattan skyline was shrouded in a light afternoon mist as our armored convoy crossed the Queensboro Bridge. Sitting in the back of the reinforced Maybach, I adjusted the collar of my tailored ivory suit—a suit I had specifically chosen because it radiated power, purity, and absolute composure.

Luca was safe in the Berkshires under the care of a private pediatric team and Viktor’s most trusted guards. Knowing he was protected allowed me to focus entirely on the battle ahead.

Beside me, Giovanni was putting on his dark suit jacket. The energy between us had shifted over the last twenty-four hours. The frantic panic of the emergency room had evolved into a calculated, lethal synergy. We were no longer an estranged couple fighting over the past; we were two formidable tacticians preparing to go to war.

“Volkov’s representatives will be in the audience,” Giovanni warned softly as the car pulled up to the rear entrance of the Moretti Global Tower on Fifth Avenue. “They’ll try to provoke you during the Q&A. They’ll ask about the divorce, about the fifteen months you spent hiding, about your financial status.”

“Let them,” I replied coolly, checking my reflection in a pocket mirror. “I was a senior litigator at Sterling & Croft before I married you, Giovanni. I’ve handled hostile takeovers and ruthless cross-examinations. A few paid reporters don't scare me.”

Giovanni looked at me, a mixture of admiration and intense pride shining in his eyes. He reached out, his fingers lightly brushing a stray strand of dark hair behind my ear. The gesture was tender, lingering just a second too long.

“You’re extraordinary, Lauren,” he murmured.

My breath hitched in my throat. For a brief moment, the noise of the city, the security guards waiting outside, and the looming press conference vanished. I looked into his dark eyes and felt the familiar, dangerous pull that had drawn us together years ago.

“Focus, Moretti,” I said softly, though my heart was beating a little faster. “We have a press conference to win.”

He smirked, pulling back his hand. “Right.”

We exited the vehicle under the protection of ten armed guards forming a human shield, moving swiftly into the private executive elevator that carried us to the top floor auditorium.

When the double doors opened to the main hall, the noise was deafening. Over two hundred journalists, financial analysts, network camera crews, and corporate board members packed the room. Flashbulbs exploded in a continuous, blinding rhythm as Giovanni and I walked down the center aisle toward the podium.

I took my seat at the head table alongside Giovanni and Richard Sterling. The room gradually fell silent as Giovanni stepped up to the microphone.

He didn't use notes. He stood tall, towering over the podium, his presence commanding absolute authority.

“Good afternoon,” Giovanni began, his deep voice carrying effortlessly through the state-of-the-art sound system. “Over the past forty-eight hours, irresponsible media outlets have published false, defamatory, and malicious fabrications regarding my personal life, my ex-wife Lauren Grant, and our son, Luca Moretti.”

The room erupted into quiet muttering at the explicit use of the name Luca Moretti.

“Let me make several facts unequivocally clear,” Giovanni continued, his gaze sweeping over the audience like a blade. “First, my son suffered an acute, life-threatening genetic inflammatory condition two nights ago. His mother saved his life through her swift, brilliant action. Second, any claim that Ms. Grant attempted to conceal or exploit our son’s existence for financial gain is a complete lie manufactured by corporate actors seeking to destabilize this company.”

Giovanni stepped back and motioned toward me. “I will now yield the floor to Ms. Lauren Grant.”

I stood up calmly, smoothing my suit jacket, and walked to the microphone. The room fell so quiet you could hear the whirring of the camera lenses adjusting.

I looked directly into the primary network camera.

“My name is Lauren Grant,” I stated, my voice steady, clear, and ringing with absolute confidence. “Fifteen months ago, I chose to step away from public life to raise my son in peace. When Luca fell ill two nights ago, I did what any mother would do: I fought for his survival. The conduct of certain staff members at Boston General Hospital, as well as the individuals who subsequently bought and leaked private medical records, was not only unethical—it was illegal.”

I picked up a heavy black binder from the podium and held it up for the cameras to see.

“Thirty minutes ago, my legal counsel filed a formal federal lawsuit in the Southern District of New York against Volkov Holdings, its subsidiary shell corporations, and seven named individuals for tortious interference, corporate espionage, and criminal defamation.”

A collective gasp echoed across the auditorium. In the third row, two men in dark gray suits—Volkov’s representatives—instantly sat up, their faces turning pale.

“We are seeking two billion dollars in damages,” I added, leaning into the microphone, a razor-sharp smile touching my lips. “And every single dollar recovered from this lawsuit will be donated directly to the pediatric intensive care unit at Boston General Hospital to ensure that no child’s care is ever delayed by administrative bias or corporate greed.”

The room exploded into chaos. Dozens of reporters jumped to their feet, shouting questions simultaneously.

“Ms. Grant! Ms. Grant! Are you and Giovanni getting back together?!” “Is Luca the official heir to the Moretti empire?!” “What about the board vote on Friday?!”

I held up a single hand, instantly silencing the room.

“My relationship with Mr. Moretti is built on a shared, unbreakable commitment to our son’s safety, health, and future,” I said calmly. “As for Moretti Global’s board vote on Friday... as the newly appointed sole trustee of twenty percent of the company’s voting shares, I will be attending that meeting personally. And I fully support Giovanni Moretti as Chief Executive Officer.”