Wayne warned Anthony about the relationship of Shayla and their neighbor and advice him to conduct DNA my himself

Wayne warned Anthony about the relationship of Shayla and their neighbor and advice him to conduct DNA my himself

                                                            

It was a gloomy Sunday afternoon, the sky smudged with thick gray clouds that hung over Westbridge like a curtain about to fall.

Anthony was at his apartment, sitting by the window, sipping black coffee while Kai colored quietly at the table. The court case was coming fast. Every day, it seemed like a new revelation, a new lie, or a new chess move from Shayla and her web of secrets.

He was exhausted — not from work, not even from the custody war.

From not knowing who to trust.

Then came a knock.

Anthony opened the door to find Wayne Bell, his old college friend and former roommate, now a private investigator and the closest thing Anthony had to a brother.

“Wayne,” Anthony said, surprised. “Didn’t expect you.”

Wayne nodded grimly. “We need to talk. In private.”

In the Study

Kai had been ushered into his room with headphones and a tablet. Anthony and Wayne now sat across from each other, the air between them crackling with tension.

Wayne pulled a worn leather notebook from his jacket, along with a manila folder.

“I’ve been doing what you asked,” he began. “Digging into Shayla. Her timelines. Where she went when she disappeared. Who she was with. And Anthony… you’re not going to like what I found.”

Anthony braced himself.

Wayne opened the folder.

Photos. Receipts. Surveillance stills.

A man appeared again and again — in photos at the local café, in the hallway near Shayla’s old apartment, in the background of a Fourth of July party.

“Who is that?” Anthony asked.

Wayne leaned forward.

“His name is Roderick Mays. He lived next door to Shayla back when she moved into that Maplewood complex after you two split briefly — apartment 3B. I tracked him down. He doesn’t live there anymore. Got promoted, moved to another city. But the time window matches.”

Anthony stared at the photos. “You think she…?”

Wayne nodded. “It wasn’t just a neighborly ‘can I borrow some sugar’ thing. They were involved. Quietly. But consistently. And it went on for five months. Right during the period Shayla told you she was ‘working on herself.’”

Anthony felt his jaw tighten.

“And get this,” Wayne said, flipping the folder to another page. “I found medical invoices. Shayla had prenatal care appointments during that time, listed under a private clinic. She told you she didn’t even know she was pregnant until months later. That’s a lie.”

Anthony felt the ground shift beneath him.

“But why?” he whispered. “Why would she lie about that? About… everything?”

Wayne didn’t hesitate.

“Because there’s a good chance Kai isn’t your son.”

The words landed like a sledgehammer.

Anthony leaned back in his chair, the wind knocked out of him.

Wayne continued, quieter now. “I’m not saying this lightly. I’ve seen people lie in court, manipulate records, forge timelines. But Shayla’s coverup is personal. And it’s precise. Which makes me think she’s hiding something huge.”

Anthony’s mind flashed back to Kai’s birth — the hospital room where Shayla refused a paternity test, saying “We don’t need one, baby. You’re the father. I just know.”

Then came the way she flinched every time someone commented that Kai didn’t look much like him.

“How long have you known this?” Anthony asked, voice low.

“I confirmed the Roderick angle last week. Been trying to decide how to bring it up. But Anthony — this isn't about revenge. This is about truth. And that boy… he deserves the truth, too.”

Wayne pulled something from his pocket. A sealed DNA test kit.

“Don’t go through the courts. Don’t wait. Do it yourself. Privately. Before Shayla finds out. Before she spins more lies.”

Anthony stared at the kit like it was a loaded gun.

Part of him didn’t want to know. Because if Kai wasn’t his, it meant he’d been building a life — sacrificing, loving, fighting — based on a lie.

But if he didn’t know… he’d never have peace.

That Night

After Kai had gone to bed, Anthony sat in the hallway outside his room, tears welling in his eyes.

He looked down at the swab in his hand. It was done. Simple. Quick.

Now all that remained… was waiting.

Waiting for truth.

Waiting for war.

Waiting for the next storm Shayla didn’t know was coming.

Across Town: In Shayla’s Loft

Shayla sipped red wine as she looked over a new strategy draft from her lawyer.

She smiled — cold, confident.

“Anthony’s too soft,” she whispered to herself. “He’ll never go that far.”

But Anthony already had.

To Be Continued…

Would you like the next chapter to reveal the DNA results and Anthony’s reaction — or switch focus to Shayla discovering what Anthony and Wayne have done behind her back?