CHAPTER 5 — The Billion-Dollar Recording
Emily knew she couldn't go to the police.
Not yet.
Damien owned politicians.
Judges.
Hospitals.
If she accused him without proof...
She would disappear.
She needed evidence.
Real evidence.
The next evening, she hid her phone inside her uniform pocket with the recorder running.
At exactly 11:45 p.m., Dr. Warren entered Alexander's room carrying another unlabeled syringe.
Emily pretended to leave.
Instead, she remained hidden behind a supply cabinet.
Minutes later...
The door opened again.
Damien Blackwood walked inside.
He looked down at Alexander with complete disgust.
"So...
Still trying to wake up?"
He laughed softly.
"You should've died in that helicopter."
Emily's breathing stopped.
Damien continued speaking.
"You always believed family mattered."
"You never realized..."
"I arranged the crash myself."
Emily nearly gasped.
Damien kept talking, believing only an unconscious man could hear him.
"The explosion was supposed to kill you instantly."
"But surviving wasn't a problem."
"I simply paid the doctors."
"I paid the board."
"I paid everyone."
"Keeping you alive has actually made me richer."
He smiled.
"As long as you stay asleep...
I own everything."
Dr. Warren nodded.
"The next injection should suppress brain activity for another three months."
Emily's hands trembled.
Every word was being recorded.
Every confession.
Every crime.
Suddenly...
Her phone vibrated.
A calendar reminder.
The tiny sound echoed through the silent room.
Damien froze.
"So...
We're not alone."
Emily's heart nearly stopped.
Security guards rushed toward the cabinet.
She ran.
The mansion exploded into chaos.
Alarms blared.
Doors automatically locked.
Guards chased her through endless marble hallways.
Emily barely escaped by climbing through a laundry chute that emptied into the underground garage.
She drove away seconds before black SUVs burst through the front gate.
Looking into her mirror...
She saw three vehicles chasing her.
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Damien wasn't trying to silence her.
He was trying to erase her forever.
