Little Girl’s Cry Echoed Through the Hall—Until Her CEO Father Saw What the Stepmom Hid
Chapter 6
The police arrived within minutes.
Daniel gave them everything.
The cameras.
The basement.
The documents.
The note.
But one thing bothered him.
There were no signs of forced entry.
No broken windows downstairs.
No damaged doors.
Nothing.
Marcus examined the security logs.
“Someone used an authorized access code.”
Daniel looked at him.
“Whose?”
Marcus hesitated.
“Victoria’s.”
Every officer in the room looked at her.
Victoria closed her eyes.
“I didn’t take her.”
Daniel wanted to believe her.
But evidence was evidence.
Then Marcus spoke.
“There is something else.”
He showed Daniel the footage.
At 10:14 a.m., Lily walked down the hallway.
She was carrying a small backpack.
At 10:16, Victoria entered.
At 10:18, the camera went black.
At 10:21, the camera returned.
Lily was gone.
Victoria was still in the hallway.
Daniel watched again.
Then again.
“Stop.”
Marcus paused.
“Zoom in.”
A reflection appeared in the glass of a framed photograph.
A man stood behind Victoria.
Daniel leaned toward the screen.
He knew that face.
Adrian Blake.
The former executive.
“Find him.”
Marcus’s team began searching.
But Adrian’s home was empty.
His phone was disconnected.
His car was abandoned at the train station.
Then Daniel’s phone rang.
Unknown number.
He answered.
“Daddy?”
Daniel stood.
“Lily!”
“Don’t come alone.”
A man’s voice replaced hers.
Adrian.
“You should have stayed out of your wife’s investigation.”
“Where is my daughter?”
“Safe.”
“If you hurt her—”
“I don’t want to hurt her.”
Adrian paused.
“I want what Emily found.”
Daniel clenched his teeth.
“The trust?”
“Yes.”
Daniel knew nothing about a trust.
Adrian laughed.
“Of course you don’t.”
“What trust?”
“The Carter Family Legacy Trust. Your father created it before his disappearance.”
Daniel looked at Victoria.
She had gone pale.
Adrian continued.
“Your father discovered that several people were stealing from the company. He built a private trust containing evidence and assets worth more than two hundred million dollars.”
Daniel couldn’t breathe.
“Where is it?”
“Emily knew.”
“She’s dead.”
“She left instructions.”
Daniel looked at the wooden box.
The old phone.
The photographs.
The note.
“What do you want?”
“Bring the evidence to the old Riverside warehouse.”
“When?”
“Tonight.”
The line went dead.
Daniel turned to Marcus.
“We’re going.”
Victoria stepped forward.
“I’m coming.”
“No.”
“You need me.”
Daniel looked at her.
“You lied to me.”
“Yes.”
“About everything.”
“No.”
She reached into her pocket.
A small blue envelope appeared.
Daniel stared.
“You said you destroyed it.”
“I lied because someone was listening.”
She handed it to him.
“I’ve been trying to keep Lily alive.”
Daniel opened it.
Inside was a handwritten map.
And Emily’s final message.
Trust the woman who looks guilty.
Daniel looked at Victoria.
For the first time, he wondered if he had misunderstood everything.
