Chapter 5 - My Uncle Destroyed the House to Reach a Six-Year-Old ChildThe explosion shook the building.
Glass shattered.
Smoke filled the hallway.
I grabbed Emma.
Sofia screamed.
Michael pulled her behind cover.
Security returned fire.
Anthony's men stormed the estate.
I carried Emma downstairs.
She clung to my neck.
“Daddy.”
“I'm here.”
“I'm scared.”
“So am I.”
She looked at me.
“Really?”
“Yes.”
She seemed surprised.
“Why?”
“Because you're important.”
We reached the bunker.
Sofia was there.
Michael joined us.
The doors locked.
For the first time, I was grateful for the paranoia that had built the place.
Anthony couldn't enter.
At least not yet.
We monitored the cameras.
One by one, my security men fell back.
Anthony's force was too large.
“He knows the house,” Michael said.
“How?”
“Because he built the security system.”
I cursed.
Of course.
My uncle had designed it twenty years ago.
He knew every weakness.
Then a message appeared on the bunker screen.
YOU CANNOT HIDE HER FOREVER.
Sofia looked at me.
“He'll find us.”
“We have time.”
“For what?”
“To finish the trust.”
Michael nodded.
We opened the documents.
Emma sat beside me.
The trust required three signatures.
Mine.
Michael's.
And Emma's.
I stared.
“She can't sign.”
Michael shook his head.
“She doesn't need to.”
“How?”
“The final authorization isn't written.”
“What is it?”
“Consent.”
“How can a six-year-old consent?”
“It isn't about legal consent.”
He pointed at a clause.
The heir must choose the guardian.
I froze.
“The guardian?”
“Yes.”
“Who?”
“The person the child chooses.”
I looked at Emma.
She looked at me.
“Me?”
She nodded.
“You.”
The trust would recognize me as the guardian.
Which meant Anthony couldn't claim control.
I signed.
Michael signed.
Then Emma placed her tiny hand on the document.
Nothing happened.
She looked confused.
I read the clause again.
The heir must name the guardian aloud.
I whispered:
“Who do you choose?”
She looked at me.
“My daddy.”
The screen lit up.
AUTHORIZED.
We had done it.
Anthony's men would never control the trust.
The money was protected.
But Anthony didn't know.
He entered the bunker ten minutes later.
The door opened.
He stood there.
Smiling.
“You really thought that would work?”
I aimed my weapon.
“Get away from my daughter.”
He laughed.
“Your daughter?”
“Yes.”
“You were never supposed to know she existed.”
“Yet here she is.”
He looked at Emma.
“Come with me.”
She shook her head.
“No.”
His face hardened.
“I am your family.”
“My daddy is family.”
I saw anger flash.
Anthony raised his gun.
Michael shot first.
Anthony staggered.
Security moved.
The battle ended quickly.
Anthony was arrested.
But not before he whispered:
“This isn't over.”
I looked at him.
“It is.”
He smiled.
“No.”
He looked at Emma.
“She has no idea what she is.”
I stared.
“What does that mean?”
Anthony was taken away.
I turned toward Emma.
She looked frightened.
Sofia shook her head.
“We need to leave.”
“Why?”
“Because he is right about one thing.”
“What?”
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“Emma isn't just the heir.”
“She is the key.”
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