Chapter 8 - Ryan disappeared in less than ten seconds.One second he stood near the stairs.
The next, there was nothing.
Dad's men searched the corridor.
No one had seen him move.
Then Luca pointed toward the floor.
A hidden panel was open.
"He knew this place better than you."
Dad knelt beside it.
"He built it."
Luca shook his head.
"No."
He looked toward me.
"He inherited it."
The panel led into another tunnel.
Dad's men went first.
I followed despite Dad telling me to stay behind.
Every step made my ribs ache.
But I couldn't stop.
Lily was alive.
My mother was alive.
And Ryan had disappeared.
The tunnel opened into an underground parking structure.
A black SUV waited with its engine running.
Luca moved toward it.
Dad grabbed his arm.
"Where are we going?"
"To get your granddaughter."
Dad stared.
"You know where she is."
"Yes."
"And my wife?"
Luca looked at me.
"She's in the same place."
I froze.
"My mother?"
He nodded.
"The prison wasn't built for Lily."
"Then for whom?"
Luca opened the vehicle door.
"For your mother."
We drove for nearly an hour.
No one spoke.
Dad sat beside me.
His hand never left mine.
Finally, he whispered:
"I should have known."
I looked at him.
"What?"
"Your mother never died."
I stared.
He continued.
"I found her car after the crash."
"But?"
"There was no body."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because I thought I was protecting you."
I looked out the window.
Everyone had been protecting me with lies.
Ryan.
Linda.
Dad.
My mother.
Everyone had decided I was too fragile for the truth.
And every lie had nearly destroyed me.
We arrived at an abandoned estate.
The house was empty.
Too empty.
Luca led us through the back.
Inside, we found a staircase descending underground.
The same type of hidden architecture as the apartment.
My stomach tightened.
At the bottom was a steel door.
Luca entered a code.
The door opened.
A woman sat in a wheelchair.
Her hair was gray.
Her face thinner.
But it was her.
My mother.
I stopped breathing.
"Mom?"
She slowly lifted her head.
Her eyes widened.
"Emily."
I collapsed beside her.
She grabbed my face.
"I thought you'd never find me."
I cried.
She cried too.
Dad stood frozen several feet away.
My mother looked at him.
"Vincent."
Dad whispered:
"I'm sorry."
She nodded.
"You should be."
Then her eyes moved to my stomach.
"How far?"
"Seven months."
Her expression changed.
"Then we're almost out of time."
Dad asked:
"Time for what?"
My mother reached for my hand.
"Your baby was never the reason they wanted you."
"Then what do they want?"
She looked at Luca.
"Show her."
Luca removed a small metal key from his pocket.
My mother stared at it.
"Your father left that for you."
I frowned.
"My grandfather?"
She nodded.
"Before he died, he discovered something."
"What?"
"That the Moretti family wasn't built on money."
Dad stared.
"Then on what?"
My mother whispered:
"Evidence."
She pointed to a locked metal box.
Inside were old photographs, documents, and a handwritten ledger.
I opened the ledger.
Names.
Dates.
Payments.
Politicians.
Judges.
Police officers.
And one final entry.
A name I knew.
Ryan Vale.
Then beneath it...
Emily Moretti.
I stared.
"What does this mean?"
My mother closed her eyes.
"It means your marriage was arranged fifteen years before you met him."
Dad looked horrified.
"No."
She continued:
"Ryan was brought into our lives because someone knew you would one day inherit the ledger."
I looked at her.
"Inherit what?"
"The truth."
Suddenly the lights flickered.
A phone began ringing.
My mother looked terrified.
"Don't answer it."
The phone kept ringing.
Luca stepped toward it.
The screen showed no number.
Dad picked it up.
A man's voice whispered:
"Vincent."
Dad froze.
Then the caller said:
"Your family has one hour."
"For what?"
"Choose which daughter lives."
The call ended.
I stared at my mother.
She whispered:
"Lily."
May you like
Then, from somewhere beyond the steel door...
A child screamed.
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