CHAPTER 7 – SOPHIE WASN'T KIDNAPPED... SHE WALKED AWAY WILLINGLY
"SOPHIE IS GONE!"
The words echoed through the mansion like a gunshot.
Emma sprinted upstairs, her heart pounding against her ribs.
Every bedroom had been searched.
Every window was locked.
The security cameras had gone black exactly forty-three seconds before the explosion.
It was impossible.
A frightened bodyguard rushed into the hallway.
"There's no sign of forced entry!"
Emma refused to believe it.
"Sophie would never leave on her own."
Then Lily tugged gently on Emma's sleeve.
"Mom..."
"I think she did."
Emma looked down.
"What do you mean?"
Lily held out a folded piece of paper she had found beneath Sophie's pillow.
Emma unfolded it with trembling hands.
It contained only one sentence.
"Don't look for me. This is the only way to save all of you."
Emma's vision blurred.
"No..."
Daniel snatched the note.
His face turned ghostly white.
He recognized the handwriting.
It wasn't Sophie's.
It belonged to Richard.
Richard grabbed the paper and crushed it in his fist.
"They forced her."
"No," Daniel whispered.
"They convinced her."
Richard looked toward the shattered window.
"They finally reached her."
Emma grabbed Richard by the collar.
"Who are THEY?"
For several seconds...
No one answered.
Finally Richard spoke.
"There is no company."
"There is no board."
"There has never been one."
Emma stared at him in confusion.
"What are you talking about?"
Richard took a deep breath.
"There are only twelve families."
"They've controlled governments, banks, pharmaceutical companies, and intelligence agencies for generations."
"They don't appear in newspapers."
"They don't run for office."
"They simply choose who does."
Emma felt her knees weaken.
"And Sophie?"
Richard closed his eyes.
"She was born into them."
Daniel interrupted.
"So was Emma."
The room fell silent.
Richard nodded slowly.
"You and Sophie are the last surviving heirs."
Emma's voice shook.
"Heirs to what?"
Richard looked directly into her eyes.
"Not my fortune."
"Our bloodline."
Before Emma could speak, every television inside the mansion suddenly turned on by itself.
The same image appeared on every screen.
Sophie.
She was sitting calmly in a luxurious room, completely unharmed.
A woman dressed in white stood beside her.
She smiled directly into the camera.
"Good evening, Emma."
"My name is Eleanor."
"I'm your aunt."
Emma froze.
"My... aunt?"
Eleanor nodded.
"Richard lied to you your entire life."
"He stole you from your real family when you were a baby."
Richard shouted at the screen.
"Don't listen to her!"
Eleanor smiled even wider.
"Ask him why your mother begged him never to separate the twins."
Emma slowly turned toward Richard.
He couldn't answer.
His silence said everything.
Tears streamed down Emma's face.
"You stole me?"
Richard whispered,
"I was trying to save you."
Eleanor laughed softly.
"Save her?"
"You kidnapped your own daughter."
Emma felt the world collapse around her.
Everything she believed...
Her childhood.
Her marriage.
Her family.
Her own name...
Could all be lies.
Then Eleanor looked into the camera one last time.
"You have twenty-four hours, Emma."
"Come alone."
"Or you'll never see Sophie alive again."
The screen suddenly went black.
Seconds later...
Richard's satellite phone rang.
He answered.
No one spoke.
Only a little girl's terrified whisper came through the speaker.
"...Mom..."
May you like
Then came a loud gunshot.
The line went dead.
