Dr. Chen arrived exactly thirty minutes later, carrying a medical bag and wearing an expression that said she'd been pulled away from something important.
That expression changed when she walked into the penthouse and saw Noa.
The little girl was now wearing the pink dress from Vivian's shopping bags. It had white flowers on it and a twirly skirt that poofed out when she spun. Which she was doing. A lot. In the middle of Kane's living room, spinning and spinning and spinning.
"I'm a ballerina!" Noa announced, arms out, spinning so fast she was getting dizzy. "I'm a pink tornado! I'm a—WHOA!"
She stumbled and crashed into the coffee table. The corner caught her right in the forehead with a solid thunk.
Noa sat down hard on the floor. For a moment, there was silence.
Then: "WAAAAAHHHHH!"
Kane was across the room in three strides. He dropped to his knees next to her. "Let me see."
"It HURTS!" Noa wailed, both hands pressed to her forehead. Tears streamed down her face. "The table ATTACKED me!"
"The table didn't attack you. You ran into it. Move your hands."
"No! It hurts!"
"I know it hurts. I need to see how bad it is."
Dr. Chen was already there, kneeling on Noa's other side. "Hello, sweetheart. I'm Dr. Chen. Can I look at your head?"
"NOOO! It's gonna hurt more!"
"I promise I'll be very gentle. I just need to make sure you're okay."
Noa peeked through her fingers at Dr. Chen. "You're a doctor?"
"Yes."
"Like on TV?"
"Sort of like that."
"Do you have a stick-o-scope?"
"You mean a stethoscope? Yes, I do."
"Can I see it?"
Dr. Chen smiled. She pulled the stethoscope from her bag and held it out. "You can see it if you let me look at your head first."
Noa considered this. Then slowly lowered her hands.
A red bump was already forming on her forehead, right in the center. It was going to be a good one—the kind that would turn purple and blue and every color of the rainbow.
Dr. Chen examined it gently, her fingers probing around the edges. Noa whimpered but held still.
"Well," Dr. Chen said, "the good news is you have a very hard head."
"I do?"
"Very hard. The bad news is you're going to have a bump there for a while."
"Will it be a big bump?"
"Medium-sized. Maybe you can tell people you fought a dragon."
Noa's eyes went wide. "I can?"
"Sure. It's more interesting than 'I ran into a coffee table.'"
"Yeah!" Noa brightened immediately. "I fought a dragon and he bonked me with his tail but I was SO BRAVE and I didn't even cry!" She paused. "Except I did cry. Just now. A lot."
"That's okay. Even dragon fighters cry sometimes."
Kane watched this exchange with something that might have been amazement. Dr. Chen had managed to calm Noa down in under a minute. He'd been about to call an ambulance.
"Can I listen?" Noa pointed at the stethoscope. "To the heart-beeping?"
"Sure." Dr. Chen placed the ear pieces in Noa's ears and put the other end against Noa's own chest. "What do you hear?"
Noa's eyes went huge. "I hear BOOMING! Like drums! Is that my heart?"
"That's your heart."
"It's SO LOUD! Does everyone's heart boom like that?"
"Everyone's."
"Even Kane's?"
Dr. Chen glanced at Kane with an amused expression. "Even Mr. Kane's. Though some people think he doesn't have one."
"That's silly," Noa said seriously. "Everyone has hearts. That's where the blood lives."
"You're absolutely right." Dr. Chen took the stethoscope back. "Now, sweetie, I need to give you a full check-up. Is that okay?"
Noa looked uncertain. "Will it hurt?"
"Most of it won't hurt at all. Some parts might be a tiny bit uncomfortable, but I'll tell you before I do anything. Deal?"
"Deal."
Dr. Chen looked at Kane. "I'll need a private space. And maybe someone she's comfortable with should stay."
"She barely knows me," Kane said.
"You're the one she keeps looking at."
Kane followed Dr. Chen's gaze. She was right. Noa kept glancing at him, like she was checking to make sure he was still there.
"Fine. Guest bedroom. This way."
The guest bedroom was as pristine and unused as the rest of the penthouse. White walls, white bed, white everything. Dr. Chen had Noa sit on the edge of the bed while she unpacked her medical bag.
Kane stood by the door, trying to look casual. He'd never felt less casual in his life.
"Okay, Noa," Dr. Chen said, pulling out various instruments. "First I'm going to check your eyes and ears. I'll use this light—see? It's small and won't hurt."
"It's like a tiny flashlight!"
"Exactly like a tiny flashlight."
Dr. Chen worked methodically, checking Noa's eyes, ears, nose, throat. She listened to her heart and lungs. Took her temperature. All the standard stuff.
Noa was a surprisingly good patient. She held still when asked. She said "ahh" when prompted. She only squirmed a little when Dr. Chen checked her ears.
But when Dr. Chen said, "Okay, now I need you to take off your dress so I can check your body," Noa went very quiet.
"Why?" she asked in a small voice.
"I need to make sure you're healthy all over. I'll be very quick."
"But..." Noa looked at Kane. Then at Dr. Chen. Then down at her lap. "The Mean Lady said I was bad. She said bad kids don't get to have privacy."
Dr. Chen's expression hardened for just a moment. Then it softened again. "The Mean Lady was wrong about a lot of things. You're not bad, and you absolutely deserve privacy. That's why only Mr. Kane and I are in here. And if you want Mr. Kane to leave—"
"No!" Noa grabbed the edge of the bed. "He has to stay! What if you're secretly a dragon and you attack me when he's gone?"
Dr. Chen smiled. "I promise I'm not a dragon."
"That's what a dragon WOULD say!"
"She has a point," Kane said from the doorway.
Dr. Chen shot him a look. "Not helping."
"I'm just saying. If I were a dragon, I'd also deny it."
Noa giggled. The tension broke a little.
"Tell you what," Dr. Chen said. "Mr. Kane can stay right where he is. And I'll explain everything I'm doing before I do it. If anything makes you uncomfortable, you tell me to stop. Okay?"
"Okay," Noa said quietly.
"Arms up."
Noa raised her arms. Dr. Chen gently lifted the pink dress off. Underneath, Noa wore new underwear—also pink, with little strawberries on them. Vivian had thought of everything.
And underneath that, Noa's body told a story.
Bruises. So many bruises in various stages of healing. Yellow ones on her ribs. Purple ones on her upper arms. Green ones on her back. A particularly nasty one on her shoulder that was still dark and angry-looking.
She was painfully thin. Her ribs showed. Her shoulder blades stuck out like little wings. Her arms and legs were sticks.
Dr. Chen's professional mask stayed in place, but Kane saw her jaw tighten. She examined each bruise carefully, taking notes on a tablet. She checked Noa's joints, her range of motion, her reflexes.
"Does this hurt?" Dr. Chen touched the bruise on Noa's shoulder gently.
"A little bit."
"How did you get it?"
"The Mean Lady grabbed me there. She shaked me really hard because I cried too loud when my tummy hurt."
Dr. Chen made a note. "When was that?"
"Um... I don't know. Before the bread day. The day I got the bread and runned away."
"And these bruises on your arms?"
"From when she pulled me to the storage room. I tried to hold onto the door but she pulled harder."
More notes.
"And these on your back?"
Noa went quiet.
"Noa?" Dr. Chen's voice was gentle. "It's okay. You can tell me."
"She pushed me into the wall," Noa whispered. "Because I spilled water. It was an accident. My hands were shaky and the cup slipped."
Kane's hands clenched into fists. He kept his face neutral, but inside, something dark and cold was growing. The Mean Lady was going to regret ever laying a finger on this child.
Dr. Chen finished her examination and helped Noa put her dress back on. "You did great, sweetheart. So brave."
"Did I pass?"
"Pass?"
"The check-up. Did I pass?"
Dr. Chen smiled sadly. "It's not a test you can fail. But you did wonderfully." She looked at Kane. "Can I speak with you outside for a moment?"
Kane nodded. He looked at Noa. "Stay on the bed. Don't jump off it."
"I won't!"
"Promise?"
"I promise!" Noa drew an X over her heart. "Cross my heart and hope to... um... what comes after that?"
"Nothing. Just cross your heart is fine."
Kane and Dr. Chen stepped into the hallway. Dr. Chen closed the door most of the way, leaving it open just a crack so they could hear if Noa needed them.
"Well?" Kane asked.
Dr. Chen pulled out her tablet. "She's severely malnourished. At three years old, she should weigh around thirty pounds. She's barely twenty-two. She's dehydrated—probably chronically. The bruises are consistent with physical abuse. The hand-shaped one on her shoulder is less than a week old."
"Prognosis?"
"With proper care? She should be fine. Children are resilient. But Kane..." Dr. Chen hesitated. "I have to report this. I'm a mandatory reporter. When I see signs of abuse, I'm legally required to contact child protective services."
Kane's expression went cold. "No."
"It's not optional—"
"I said no."
"Kane, I could lose my license—"
"I'll handle it."
Dr. Chen stared at him. "Handle it how?"
"That's not your concern."
"The hell it isn't! Kane, there are procedures. Systems in place to protect children. You can't just—"
"Systems that failed her already." Kane's voice was ice. "Systems that let her drink mop water and go days without food. Systems that would put her in foster care where statistically she has a forty percent chance of being abused again. No. She stays here."
"Here? Kane, you can't just keep a child like she's a stray puppy you found!"
"Watch me."
"You don't know anything about raising children!"
"I'll learn."
"This is insane!"
"Dr. Chen." Kane's voice dropped lower. Colder. The voice that made board members and competitors shake. "I pay you very well. Exceptionally well. Enough that you can afford to retire comfortably if you wanted to. I'm asking you to give me one week. Seven days. To figure this out properly. After that, if you still think involving CPS is necessary, we'll discuss it."
Dr. Chen opened her mouth. Closed it. Opened it again. "One week."
"One week."
"And you're getting her proper food. Real food. I'm writing down a meal plan—"
"Whatever she needs."
"And if I see any signs that she's not being properly cared for—"
"You won't."
Dr. Chen sighed. She looked tired. "Why are you doing this? You don't even know if she's yours."
"Does it matter?"
"Of course it matters!"
"Why?" Kane looked toward the door where Noa was humming something to herself inside. "She's a child. She was hurt. She needs help. Whether she shares my DNA or not doesn't change those facts."
Dr. Chen studied him for a long moment. "You're serious about this."
"Completely."
"You realize your entire life is about to change."
"I'm aware."
"No more late nights at the office. No more business trips without planning. No more living like a robot who only needs sleep and coffee to function."
"I understand."
Dr. Chen shook her head slowly. "Fifteen years I've been your doctor. I've seen you with broken ribs, pneumonia, and a concussion. You never once took time off to heal. But a three-year-old shows up and suddenly you're clearing your schedule."
"Your point?"
"No point. Just... interesting." Dr. Chen pulled a prescription pad from her pocket and started writing. "Here's the meal plan. Small, frequent meals. Nothing too rich yet—her system needs to adjust. Lots of water. These are vitamins—children's multivitamin, vitamin D, iron supplement. And this..." She wrote another prescription. "Is for a child therapist. Dr. Sarah Lin. She specializes in trauma cases."
Kane took the papers. "Therapy."
"That child has been through hell. She's going to need help processing it. Probably for years."
"Fine."
"And Kane?" Dr. Chen's expression softened. "Get help for yourself too. Parenting is hard. Parenting a traumatized child is even harder. Don't try to do this alone."
"I have Vivian."
"Vivian is your assistant, not a nanny."
"I'll hire a nanny."
"Good. Do that. Soon." Dr. Chen packed up her bag. "I'll come back in three days to check on her. Make sure she's gaining weight and the bruises are healing properly."
"Thank you."
Dr. Chen paused at the door. "She keeps looking at you."
"You mentioned that before."
"No, I mean she REALLY keeps looking at you. Like you're the only solid thing in her world right now. That's a lot of responsibility, Kane. Don't let her down."
"I won't."
Dr. Chen nodded and left.
Kane stood in the hallway for a moment, looking at the prescriptions in his hand. Meal plans. Vitamins. Therapy.
His entire life was indeed about to change.
From inside the guest room, Noa's voice called out: "Kane? Can I get off the bed now? My butt is getting tired!"
Despite everything, Kane's mouth twitched. "Yes. You can get off the bed."
"FINALLY!"
He heard her jump down—the thump of small feet hitting the floor. Then the patter of those feet running toward the door.
Noa appeared, pink dress twirling, new bump on her forehead shining. "The doctor said I'm gonna be okay! She said I'm really strong! Did you know I'm strong?"
"I'm starting to realize that."
"And she said I get to have vitamins! What are vitamins?"
"Pills that make you healthy."
"Oh." Noa thought about this. "Are they yummy?"
"Some are."
"Good! I only want yummy ones."
"That's not how—" Kane stopped. Looked at her hopeful face. "We'll find yummy ones."
"YAY!" Noa grabbed his hand. Her whole hand fit in his palm with room to spare. "Can we watch the rest of the bunny show now? The one with the fox? They didn't solve the mystery yet and I REALLY want to know who took the carrots!"
Kane looked down at their joined hands. Hers so small and warm. His so large and usually cold.
"Yes," he said. "We can watch the bunny show."
"And can we have snacks?"
"You just ate a sandwich at the coffee shop."
"But that was FOREVER ago! Like a whole hour!"
"It was forty-five minutes."
"That's basically forever!"
Kane sighed. He consulted Dr. Chen's meal plan. It said: "Small, frequent meals throughout the day."
"Fine. We can have a snack."
"BEST DAY EVER!" Noa started pulling him toward the living room. "Come on! Hurry! The carrots aren't gonna find themselves!"
As Kane let himself be dragged by a three-year-old in a pink dress, he heard Vivian's voice from the kitchen, probably on the phone: "—yes, I know it's insane. No, I don't know what he's thinking. Yes, there is actually a child in the penthouse. A real one. With pigtails. Well, technically her hair is still too tangled for pigtails, but we're working on it—"
This was his life now.
Caius Kane, billionaire CEO, feared by business rivals and respected by world leaders, was about to spend his evening watching a cartoon about a bunny detective and eating snacks with a tiny girl who thought he was as tall as a tree.
And the strangest part?
He didn't hate it.
To be continued...