Chapter 6 - THE NIGHT LILY DISAPPEARED
We were supposed to leave at dawn.
Vincent had arranged a safe apartment through his attorney.
Daniel would escort us.
I had packed everything.
Lily's yellow socks.
Her crayons.
Her favorite stuffed rabbit.
The purple notebook.
At 2:13 in the morning, I woke to a sound.
A soft click.
I opened my eyes.
The bedroom door stood slightly open.
I sat up.
"Lily?"
Her bed was empty.
For a moment, I thought she had gone to the bathroom.
Then I saw the window.
Open.
The curtains moving in the cold night air.
My heart stopped.
"Lily?"
I ran into the hallway.
"LILY!"
No answer.
I rushed downstairs.
The mansion was silent.
Then I saw the front security door.
Open.
A guard lay unconscious near the entrance.
I screamed.
Within seconds, alarms sounded.
Daniel appeared with two armed men.
"What happened?"
"My daughter!"
My voice broke.
"She's gone!"
Vincent came down the staircase wearing a black shirt and trousers.
His face was pale.
"Elena?"
I ran toward him.
"Someone took Lily!"
He stopped.
For one terrible moment, he looked exactly like the man in the photograph.
A father whose child had vanished.
Then his expression changed.
Cold.
Controlled.
Terrifying.
"Lock down the property."
Daniel spoke into his radio.
"All gates. All vehicles. Nobody leaves."
Vincent turned to me.
"When did you last see her?"
"At bedtime."
"Did you hear anything?"
"A click. The door."
He nodded.
"Stay with me."
I grabbed his arm.
"Find her."
His eyes met mine.
"I will."
Then his phone rang.
Unknown number.
Vincent answered.
A man's voice spoke.
"Hello, brother."
Adrian.
Vincent went still.
"Where is she?"
Adrian laughed softly.
"Straight to business."
"Where is Lily?"
"Safe. For now."
I covered my mouth.
Vincent's voice became deadly quiet.
"If you hurt her—"
"Relax. I'm not interested in the maid's child."
"Then why take her?"
"Because you finally have something to lose again."
Silence.
Adrian continued.
"You've spent fourteen years hiding behind Sofia's ghost. Now a little girl walks into your kitchen and suddenly you're human."
Vincent's jaw tightened.
"What do you want?"
"The documents."
"What documents?"
"Don't insult me."
Adrian's voice hardened.
"The ones Isabella hid before she died."
Vincent froze.
I stared at him.
Isabella.
His wife.
Adrian continued.
"You have six hours."
The call ended.
Vincent lowered the phone.
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Then I grabbed his shirt.
"What documents?"
He looked at me.
"I don't know."
"He's taken my daughter!"
"I know."
"No, you don't!"
My voice cracked.
"You lost Sofia fourteen years ago. You know what this feels like. You know!"
His face crumpled.
For one brief second, the mafia boss disappeared.
Only a broken father remained.
"Yes," he whispered.
"I know."
Then he took my hands.
"And I will not let it happen again."
Daniel entered.
"Sir, we found the guard's body camera."
Vincent turned.
"Show me."
The footage was grainy.
A black van.
Two masked men.
A small figure wrapped in a blanket.
Lily.
I made a sound I didn't recognize.
Then the camera captured something else.
One of the kidnappers turned.
A tattoo appeared on his wrist.
A black serpent.
Vincent went completely still.
Daniel whispered:
"Marcus Velez."
I felt the room collapse around me.
Lily's father.
The man I'd escaped.
May you like
He had found us.
And this time, he had taken my daughter.
