Chapter 7 - The Gunshot Was Meant for Me—But Emma Stepped Between Victor and My DaughtersChaos exploded.
I heard screams.
Gunfire.
Glass breaking.
I grabbed Emma.
Victor disappeared.
Then I heard Sophie crying.
I ran toward the nursery.
The door was locked.
I kicked it open.
My daughters were inside.
Alive.
But the room was filling with smoke.
Emma rushed past me.
She grabbed Lily.
I took Sophie.
Ethan carried Grace.
We escaped through the back door.
The farmhouse burned behind us.
Victor was gone.
But he left a message.
Written on the wall:
THE TRUST IS MINE.
We found the pendant in the ashes.
The ruby was cracked.
Inside was the microchip.
Ethan connected it to a laptop.
The files appeared.
Victor had bribed judges.
Police officers.
Doctors.
Bankers.
But the final folder contained something unexpected.
Claire's video.
She appeared on screen.
Pregnant.
Smiling.
My heart shattered.
“Daniel,” she said.
“If you're watching this, something happened.”
She looked directly into the camera.
“I need you to trust someone.”
The screen changed.
Emma's mother.
Sarah Carter.
Claire was sitting beside her.
“I don't know what Victor will do,” Claire said.
“But Sarah knows.”
The recording ended.
Emma started crying.
“My mother knew.”
“Yes.”
“Why didn't she tell me?”
“Maybe she was protecting you.”
The next file revealed the location of Sarah's safe house.
We went there.
But it was empty.
Except for a note.
I'M SORRY. I HAD TO RUN.
And underneath:
DON'T TRUST THE MAN WHO SAVED YOU.
I looked at Ethan.
He looked at me.
May you like
We both understood.
Someone else was still controlling the game.
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