Chapter 6 - The Mother Who Could Not Come HomeDante watched the sedan disappear beyond the trees.
For one terrible moment, he considered following it.
Then Rebecca grabbed his arm.
“Don't.”
“She was right there.”
“And whoever took her wants us to chase them.”
Dante turned toward her.
“That's Sophie's mother.”
Rebecca's expression softened.
“I know.”
The federal team searched the property.
They found signs of a hurried departure but no evidence of a struggle.
That suggested Emily had left voluntarily.
Or had been forced to leave under threat.
Inside a bedroom closet, Rebecca discovered a hidden compartment containing another recording.
Emily's voice sounded weaker than before.
“If someone finds this, please tell Daniel I never stopped loving him.”
Dante looked away.
“I wanted to come home every day. I wanted to watch Sophie grow up. But Meridian had photographs of her school, our cottage, and Daniel's workplace.”
Her voice broke.
“They told me that if I contacted my family, they would kill them.”
The recording continued.
“Adrian is alive. He knows where I am. And the person running Meridian's American operations is not who everyone thinks.”
Then the recording ended abruptly.
Dante looked at Rebecca.
“Who runs Meridian?”
“We don't know.”
“Find out.”
Back at the estate, Sophie was waiting in the library.
She had arranged three chairs around Dante's desk.
One for herself.
One for Dante.
One for Daniel.
The empty chair made Dante's chest ache.
“Did you find Daddy?”
“Not yet.”
Sophie looked down.
“Did you find Mommy?”
Dante went still.
“Why do you ask?”
“Because everybody keeps whispering her name.”
Dante sat beside her.
He had faced armed enemies without hesitation.
But explaining this to a six-year-old required a different kind of courage.
“Sophie, we have reason to believe your mother survived the accident.”
She stared at him.
“She's alive?”
“We think so.”
For several seconds, she didn't move.
Then she began crying.
Not loudly.
Not dramatically.
She simply covered her face with both hands.
Dante held her gently.
“Why didn't she come home?” Sophie whispered.
“Because dangerous people threatened your family.”
“Did she forget me?”
“No.”
“Are you sure?”
Dante thought of the drawing in the farmhouse.
“I'm certain.”
Sophie wiped her cheeks.
“Then we have to find her.”
“We will.”
She looked at the empty chair.
“And Daddy.”
“And Daddy.”
That night, Rebecca received an emergency message.
Daniel Carter had been located.
He was being held at an abandoned warehouse outside Albany.
The information came from an anonymous source.
Dante immediately suspected a trap.
Rebecca agreed.
They organized a controlled rescue operation.
Federal agents approached the warehouse from multiple directions.
Inside, Daniel was tied to a chair.
He was bruised and exhausted but conscious.
Two armed guards watched him.
The agents entered, secured the guards, and freed Daniel.
But Daniel refused to leave immediately.
“Emily,” he gasped. “They said they have Emily.”
Rebecca helped him stand.
“Who?”
Daniel looked at Dante.
“Your brother.”
Dante felt cold.
“Adrian?”
Daniel nodded.
“He came to see me.”
“What did he want?”
“The original Project Lantern evidence.”
“We have copies.”
Daniel shook his head.
“No. Emily kept the master ledger. The one with the real names.”
Dante understood.
The records they had recovered showed financial transactions and patient transfers.
The master ledger would identify everyone involved.
Including Meridian's leadership.
“Where is it?” Dante asked.
Daniel swallowed.
“Emily hid it somewhere only Sophie would think to look.”
Dante closed his eyes.
Of course.
The detective games.
The hat.
The notebook.
Emily had created a trail of clues long before her disappearance.
She had trusted her daughter to preserve the evidence without understanding its significance.
Daniel continued.
“Adrian said that if we don't give him the ledger, he'll come for Sophie.”
Dante's phone vibrated.
A message appeared from an unknown number.
It contained a photograph of the Moretti estate.
Taken only minutes earlier.
May you like
Beneath it were six words.
YOUR LITTLE DETECTIVE IS RUNNING OUT OF TIME.
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