Chapter 9 - The BloodlineThe room went silent.
Daniel stepped back.
“What did you mean?”
His mother looked at Emma.
“Your father used my DNA.”
Claire shook her head.
“I don't understand.”
“He wanted an heir who could unlock the database.”
Daniel stared.
“He used my genetic material?”
“Yes.”
“But I never knew Emma's mother.”
“You didn't have to.”
Daniel's face hardened.
“What are you saying?”
His mother sat down.
“Your father had samples from you taken when you were sixteen.”
Daniel remembered.
Medical tests.
Blood work.
Routine physicals.
He had never questioned them.
“He used your DNA to create a registry.”
Claire stared.
“You mean Emma was selected because of his plan?”
“No.”
His mother looked at Claire.
“Michael and I tried to stop it.”
Claire's eyes narrowed.
“My husband knew you?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn't he tell me?”
“Because he knew you were being watched.”
Claire felt tears rise.
“So my whole marriage was a lie?”
“No.”
Her mother answered gently.
“Your love was real.”
She looked toward Emma.
“But the danger was real too.”
Daniel asked, “What happened the night Michael died?”
His mother closed her eyes.
“Your father confronted him.”
“Where?”
“The Keegan warehouse.”
Daniel went still.
“Michael had stolen the master file.”
“What file?”
“The names of everyone involved.”
“Judges?”
“Politicians.”
“Police?”
“Doctors.”
“Business owners.”
“Everyone.”
Claire looked at Emma.
“Why does she matter?”
His mother whispered:
“Because the master file was encrypted using her birth data.”
Daniel finally understood.
“That's why everyone wants her.”
“Yes.”
“Why did Michael hide it inside her rabbit?”
“Because he knew nobody would suspect a child.”
Claire's eyes filled with tears.
“Did Michael die there?”
His mother nodded.
“Yes.”
Daniel's fists clenched.
“Who killed him?”
His mother looked at him.
“Richard Keegan.”
Claire closed her eyes.
For two years, she had carried grief.
Now she finally knew who had taken her husband.
Daniel stood.
“I'm going to kill him.”
His mother grabbed his arm.
“No.”
“He murdered Michael.”
“And killing him will destroy everything Michael died for.”
Daniel looked at Emma.
His daughter.
The word echoed in his mind.
My daughter.
Emma opened her eyes.
“Daniel?”
He knelt beside her.
“Yes?”
“Are you my daddy?”
Daniel couldn't answer.
Claire looked at him.
Her lips trembled.
Emma waited.
Daniel finally said:
“I want to be.”
Emma smiled.
“Okay.”
Then the house shook.
A massive explosion tore through the front wall.
Claire screamed.
Daniel grabbed Emma.
Ethan dragged their mother behind cover.
Gunfire erupted.
Men stormed the house.
Daniel fired back.
Then Richard Keegan walked through the smoke.
He looked at Claire.
Then at Emma.
Then Daniel.
“Family reunion.”
Daniel raised his weapon.
Richard smiled.
“You want answers?”
He lifted a phone.
“Come with me.”
On the screen was a live video.
Claire saw Michael.
Alive.
Tied to a chair.
Her heart shattered.
“Michael?”
The man on the screen raised his head.
His lips moved.
Only three words.
“Claire, don't trust—”
The screen went black.
May you like
Richard smiled.
“You have one hour.”
