Page 73 of The Bratva's Secret Twins

“What’re you doing?” I demanded.

“I'm reaching out to Alba, the babysitter,” she replied and showed me her screen.

I glanced at it for a moment, taking in the content of the message before returning my focus to the road. It wasn’t anything serious. She wanted the woman to fetch the birth certificates of the kids.

Vivian directed me to her place, and I realized that when we were chasing after her, she had been going in the opposite direction. The woman really wanted to keep those kids from me, which only piqued my interest.

We got to her place, and I pulled over by the driveway and killed the engine.

Peering into the rearview mirror, she tweaked her hair and used a handkerchief to dab the blood off her face—likely to not scar the kids. Then, she unbuckled her seatbelt and took one last look at me before opening the door to step out.

I did the same and followed her into the house. Its interior was cozy, nice for someone just starting to find her place in the world.

“Hi, Ms. Keith.” A girl in her mid-thirties, I presumed to be Alba, rose to her feet as we reached the living room.

She had two documents in her hands, and when she saw me, she just simply froze for a second. I had never seen her before in my life, but for some reason, it seemed like I appeared oddly familiar to her.

I noticed the subtle eye signal between the two ladies, and I figured that Vivian must have filled her in on our history together.

“The certificates you asked for,” Alba said, handing them over to her.

“Thanks, Alba.” Vivian accepted them and turned to me. “Here. See for yourself.”

I took the papers and carefully read through them, paying rapt attention to the dates of birth.

She wasn’t lying.

Based on these certificates, the kids—Leo and Sophia—were born exactly nine months after she’d fled. A newfound feeling was gradually swelling up inside me as the possibility of fatherhood was gnawing at me.

“You can do a DNA test to confirm,” she said to me, her voice laced with certainty.

Just as I lifted my head to reply, the playful noise of two toddlers racing to Vivian’s feet caught my attention.

“Mama! Mama!” they chorused.

They were the most adorable toddlers I had ever seen: so cute and full of life.

Time slowed down just enough for me to observe the kids; Leo, the first to get to his mom, was a spitting image of myself, and there was no need for a DNA test, given the striking resemblance.

“Hey, pumpkin.” Vivian smiled broadly, picking him up in her arms as he giggled and played with her hair.

Sophia soon got to her mom’s feet, but she seemed more interested in the strange man in their living room than she was in seeing her mom. She was a mini-Vivian: the same charming blue eyes, innocent look, and hair color, among other features.

Partly hiding behind her mother, Sophia timidly looked at me, probably wondering who I was.

With an inviting smile, completely blown away by her innocence, I bent over to her level. I had never felt this way toward any child before. The way Sophia’s eyes penetrated my soul broke down the solid wall that I had built, and I almost felt like a different person. My heart melted when she smiled at me, revealing her missing teeth.

“Hey,” I called her softly, my voice laced with affection.

I wanted so badly to hold her, to embrace her and tell her that I was her daddy. My brain was flooded with thousands of thoughts about the thrill of fatherhood.

Vivian was right. The kids were mine; I didn’t need any other proof. I had all the proof that I needed.

“Hi.” She waved at me and took gentle steps forward.

At the sound of her voice, something clicked in me, and I was overwhelmed by an unfamiliar feeling—but it felt good.

“What’s your name?” she asked with a blush.

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