Chapter 15 - LITTLE STARThree months later, the Montgomery estate was quiet again.
The investigation had dismantled most of Victor's network.
Jasper was awaiting trial.
The Blackwood companies were under court supervision.
The charity foundation had been rebuilt.
And Isabella had become its sole legal controller.
She refused to keep a single dollar stolen by Jasper.
Every recovered cent was returned to the people who had been cheated.
Mother moved into the estate.
Rebecca finally had her real name back.
Elena survived.
For the first time in decades, she was able to walk outside without looking over her shoulder.
And me?
I went back to being Caleb Montgomery.
At least publicly.
One evening, Isabella and I sat on the back steps.
The sun was setting behind the trees.
She held the same silver pendant.
"You know," she said, "Dad called me Little Star."
"I remember."
She smiled.
"Why did he call me that?"
I looked at her.
"Because you were the brightest thing in the room."
She laughed softly.
Then her expression changed.
"Caleb."
"What?"
"Do you ever wonder what would have happened if you hadn't come back?"
"Every day."
"I probably would've died."
I said nothing.
She leaned against my shoulder.
"Thank you."
I looked toward the estate.
For the first time, it didn't feel haunted.
It felt like home.
Then my phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
One message.
NO ONE KILLED YOUR FATHER.
I stared.
A second message appeared.
HE KILLED HIMSELF TO PROTECT YOU.
My heartbeat changed.
I opened the third message.
There was a photograph.
Our father.
Alive.
Standing in a foreign city.
The date on the photograph was four years after his supposed death.
I stopped breathing.
Isabella noticed.
"What?"
I handed her the phone.
She stared at the image.
"That's Dad."
"Yes."
"That's impossible."
I zoomed in.
There was writing on the back.
One sentence.
I TRUSTED THE WRONG SON.
Isabella looked at me.
"Caleb..."
My phone buzzed again.
This time there was a video.
I pressed play.
Our father appeared on screen.
Older.
Alive.
Terrified.
He looked directly into the camera.
"If my children are watching this, then Victor has failed."
I felt every muscle in my body tense.
My father continued.
"That means the Blackwood network is broken."
He paused.
"But there is one person left who cannot be allowed to speak."
The screen went black.
Then one final word appeared.
CALEB.
I stared at it.
Isabella grabbed my hand.
"He's alive."
I nodded.
"Or someone wants us to think he is."
The camera in the garden suddenly moved.
Not ours.
It was a new device.
Someone had installed it without triggering a single alarm.
I stood.
"Stay inside."
Isabella followed.
"No."
"Little Star."
"I'm not hiding again."
We reached the garden.
Nothing.
No one.
Just the trees.
Then I noticed the ground near the old oak.
Freshly disturbed soil.
I dug with my hands.
A metal box appeared.
Inside was a single key.
Not brass.
Not silver.
Black.
Three interlocking circles were engraved across it.
Beneath the key was a handwritten note.
The handwriting was unmistakable.
Our father's.
Caleb,
You thought the war ended when Victor fell.
It didn't.
Victor was only the gatekeeper.
The person behind him has been watching you since the night I died.
And now that person knows exactly where you live.
There was one final line.
Protect Isabella.
No matter who she turns out to be.
I looked at my sister.
She was staring at me.
"What does it mean?"
I slowly closed the box.
"I don't know yet."
Behind us, the garden lights went out.
Every single one.
The house security system began screaming.
The gates locked.
The doors slammed shut.
Then a voice came through the outdoor speakers.
A voice I had not heard in five years.
My father's voice.
"Hello, son."
Isabella grabbed my arm.
I raised my weapon.
The speakers crackled.
"Did you really think Jasper was the last monster in your family?"
Silence.
Then a final sentence.
"Come to the old harbor, Caleb."
A pause.
"Bring your sister."
The speakers died.
I looked at Isabella.
She looked back at me.
Neither of us spoke.
Because we both understood the truth.
The warehouse had never been the end of the story.
It had only been the first door.
And somewhere beyond that door, the man who started everything was waiting.
Our father.
Alive.
May you like
Watching.
And calling us home.
