My Husband’s Bedmate Hurt My Daughter Chapter 04

My Husband’s Bedmate Hurt My Daughter Chapter 04

“Watch your step, Serena,” Matteo said coldly, staring me down.

“Keep this up, and we’ll file for divorce for real.”

With that, he led Bianca toward the elevator.

Right before the elevator doors slid shut, Bianca tilted her chin up and looked at me with blatant defiance.

I stood rooted to the spot, my fingernails digging sharp crescent marks into my palm.

Once they were gone, I turned to Clara, the front desk clerk who’d kept her head down through everything.

“Write down the full names of every person who spoke up to defend Bianca just now. Don’t leave a single one out.”

She hesitated briefly, then nodded quickly.

“Right away, Ms. DeLuca.”

The employees who’d spoken up paled instantly, scrambling to plead their case.

“Ms. DeLuca, we were only stating what we saw happen!”

“We were just looking out for the company’s best interests.”

I ignored their pleas entirely.

“The European division’s liquidation project is severely understaffed. Since you all claim to care so deeply about company profits, you can go prove your dedication over there.”

Their faces drained of all color on the spot.

Gareth, the HR director who’d demanded my apology, stepped forward defiantly.

“Ms. DeLuca, you don’t have the authority to reassign personnel like that. Mr. Voss is the one in charge of all company operations.”

I glanced straight at him.

“Almost forgot about you. You’re fired, effective immediately.”

His expression twisted with shock.

“Ms. Marlowe hired me personally for this HR position. You don’t have the authority to fire me.”

An HR director, planted by Bianca.

I let out a quiet, knowing laugh.

That explained everything.

Matteo and Bianca had already weaseled their people into HR.

No wonder they thought they could get away with this openly.

Did they honestly think planting a few loyalists could turn my DeLuca Group into the Voss family’s company?

I paid him no further attention and dialed a third-party corporate turnaround management team directly.

“Take full operational control of the company starting this minute. Freeze all financial transactions, outgoing contracts, and internal personnel appointments. Launch a full audit focused on every project Matteo Voss and Bianca Marlowe have managed.”

The team agreed immediately on the line.

I hung up, ready to head downstairs, when Clara came sprinting toward me, face ashen with panic.

“Ms. DeLuca, something terrible has happened.”

“Matteo and Ms. Marlowe just took Elodie with them.”

Everything spun for a second, and I almost lost my balance.

“What?”

Her voice shook uncontrollably.

“They said the child is Matteo’s daughter, and they’re taking her home with them.”

My mind went completely blank for a split second.

I forced myself to stay upright.

“Call the police.”

Clara stared in confusion.

“But… Matteo is Elodie’s biological father. Won’t police just label this a private family matter?”

Gareth snickered from nearby.

“Ms. DeLuca, aren’t you overreacting by calling law enforcement over a simple family squabble? No wonder Matteo can’t stand dealing with you.”

I shot him one sharp glance, wasting not a single word arguing with him, and dialed the police myself.

“A man has unlawfully removed my minor daughter from these premises. Earlier today, she was assaulted here at DeLuca Group and locked alone inside a storage closet for over three hours. I fear for her immediate safety.”

Officers arrived soon after to take statements, yet multiple staff members told them the same story.

“This is just a husband-wife argument.”

“The father took his own kid—this isn’t kidnapping.”

“Ms. DeLuca was highly aggressive earlier and even threw a punch inside the office.”

I sank down to my knees, my voice trembling as I spoke to the responding officers.

“That is not what occurred. My daughter was the victim of abuse. My husband’s assistant locked her in a dark storage room for three full hours. Now my foolish husband has left with her alongside that same woman, and I have no idea what harm they might inflict on her.”

“For your reference, my legal name is Serena DeLuca. My family funds this police department. If my daughter isn’t located quickly, your department will face total budget collapse next month.”

The officers reacted instantly, instructing their tech unit to pull security camera footage and track vehicle GPS routes.

It didn’t take long to confirm Matteo had driven Elodie to his mother Lucia Voss’s residence.

I let out a shaky breath of relief, but anxiety immediately tightened in my chest again.

I’d always believed his mother suffered from poor health, and I’d trusted she at minimum cared for Elodie deeply.

Now I could no longer trust anyone tied to the Voss family name at all.

Once officers confirmed the child was on a family member’s private property and tried reassuring me she was not in imminent danger, I declined further explanation and raced to the address myself.

When I pulled up outside the house, Matteo’s car was parked out front.

I didn’t rush straight inside.

Standing on the front step, I sent my attorney Dante Russo the property location via text.

[If you haven’t heard back from me within ten minutes, send police to this address right away.]

After hitting send, I pushed the front door open and stepped inside.

In the living room, Elodie sat cross-legged on the carpet, a crayon clutched in one hand with a thick stack of blank paper spread beside her. She drew through quiet, hiccuping sobs.

Matteo sat rigid on the sofa, his expression cold, and didn’t even glance up when I walked in.

“You love drawing so much?” he said flatly.

“Then keep drawing. No breaks until every page in this stack is filled in.”