Chapter 8 - THE NIGHT BEFORE MIDNIGHT
At 8:17 p.m., Julian received a message from an unknown number.
IF YOU WANT YOUR WIFE ALIVE, STOP LOOKING FOR NORTHSTAR.
He stared.
Another message appeared.
AND KEEP THE GARDENER AWAY FROM THE CHILD.
Julian looked toward the nursery.
Elena was helping Clara prepare for bed.
His jaw tightened.
At 8:43, Gabriel Mercer entered the study.
“Sir, we need to move the family.”
Julian looked up.
“Why?”
“Security concerns.”
“What concerns?”
Gabriel hesitated.
“Anonymous threats.”
Julian studied him.
“How did you know?”
Gabriel's expression changed.
“Know what?”
“The threats.”
Silence.
Then Gabriel said:
“I assumed.”
Julian stood.
“You assumed?”
Gabriel looked toward the door.
For the first time in nine years, Julian saw fear in his security chief's eyes.
At 9:02, the estate's power failed.
Emergency lights flickered.
Security alarms sounded.
Julian reached for his phone.
No signal.
He looked toward the window.
Then heard a scream.
Clara.
Elena was in the nursery when the lights went out.
Clara sat upright.
“Ellie?”
“I'm here.”
The girl began shaking.
“Bad road.”
Elena took her hand.
“Stay with me.”
Footsteps sounded outside.
Heavy.
Fast.
A man's voice.
“Open the door.”
Elena recognized it.
Gabriel.
She locked the nursery.
Then moved Clara toward the adjoining bathroom.
“Sweetheart, remember the game?”
Clara nodded.
“Quiet mouse.”
“Good girl.”
They hid behind the bathtub.
Elena held Clara close.
Footsteps approached.
The door handle moved.
Then a heavy impact shook the frame.
At 9:11, Julian reached the nursery.
The door was damaged.
Gabriel stood outside.
His gun was drawn.
Julian froze.
“Gabriel.”
The security chief turned.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then Gabriel said:
“Sir, step away.”
Julian stared.
“What are you doing?”
Gabriel's face hardened.
“Finishing something that should have been finished months ago.”
Julian felt cold.
“Where's Nathaniel?”
Gabriel smiled faintly.
“Waiting.”
“For what?”
Gabriel looked toward the nursery.
“For the girl.”
Before he could move, another guard appeared at the end of the hallway.
“Drop the weapon!”
Gabriel turned.
A struggle followed.
The gun fell.
Security restrained him.
Julian rushed into the nursery.
“Elena!”
No answer.
He searched the bedroom.
The bathroom.
The closet.
Then he heard tapping.
Three quick.
Two slow.
From beneath the bathtub.
He knelt.
“Elena?”
A small voice answered.
“Daddy?”
Julian closed his eyes.
“I'm here.”
Clara crawled out.
Elena followed.
Julian held his daughter.
Then looked at Elena.
For a moment, he couldn't speak.
At 9:47, Gabriel was taken into custody.
At 10:12, investigators confirmed Nathaniel had left his Manhattan residence.
At 10:36, a search team reached the remote Northstar property.
And at 11:58 p.m., Julian's phone rang.
He answered.
A woman's voice whispered:
“Julian?”
His heart stopped.
“Vivian?”
A sob.
“She's alive.”
Julian closed his eyes.
“Who?”
Vivian's voice broke.
“Maisie.”
Before midnight, Julian Vance finally understood why his daughter had refused to speak.
She had been carrying a secret too frightening for a four-year-old to explain.
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A secret that connected two missing mothers, a stolen child, and a betrayal inside his own family.
And the gardener who had entered his house to escape grief was about to learn that her daughter had never died.
