Chapter 8 - The Father at the Door
Julian did not enter the safe room.
He remained in the doorway, careful not to move closer to the children.
Noah hid his face against Audrey’s shoulder.
Elias continued staring at Julian.
“Are you the voice?” he asked.
Julian crouched so they were at the same height.
“I am the man whose voice was copied.”
“That is not what I asked.”
Audrey felt Julian absorb the question.
“No,” he said. “I did not lock the doors.”
“Can you prove it?”
“Not yet.”
“Then Mom should not trust you.”
Julian nodded slowly.
“You are right.”
Elias looked surprised.
Audrey carried Noah downstairs while Julian followed at a distance.
Serena had regained consciousness. Her head was bruised from hitting the porch railing, but she insisted she had not been directly attacked.
“The man asked for the drive,” she said. “When I refused, he went inside. I tried to follow and fell.”
“Was it Adrian?” Audrey asked.
Serena’s expression tightened.
“I only saw him from behind.”
“What about Miriam?”
“She followed his vehicle using the old truck.”
Audrey examined the photograph again.
Adrian appeared thinner, with longer hair and a scar near his left temple. Victor stood beside him, one hand resting on Adrian’s shoulder.
The timestamp showed the image had been taken at a Cross Meridian rehabilitation facility in Switzerland.
“He survived the fire,” Audrey said.
Julian studied the background.
“That facility specializes in neurological trauma.”
“You know it?”
“My mother was treated there before she died.”
Audrey looked at him.
“Your father told everyone she died at home.”
“He told me she wanted privacy.”
Julian removed his phone and attempted to access Cross Meridian’s internal database.
His credentials had been revoked.
Victor already knew he had chosen Audrey over him.
An incoming call appeared.
Victor Cross.
Julian answered on speaker.
“Where are you?”
Victor’s voice remained calm.
“You have made a mistake, son.”
“Did Adrian survive?”
Audrey stepped closer.
There was a pause.
“Where is Audrey?” Victor asked.
Julian looked at her.
“She is listening.”
“Then perhaps she can explain why she hid two Cross heirs from their family.”
“They are not your heirs.”
“They carry my name.”
“They carry mine.”
“Exactly.”
Julian’s expression hardened.
“What do you want?”
“Bring Audrey and the Gemini drive to the estate. The children remain where they are.”
Audrey almost laughed.
“You expect us to believe you will leave them alone?”
Victor addressed her directly.
“I had no intention of harming your sons.”
“You created files for them before they were born.”
“I prepared for their future.”
“You studied children as assets.”
“I protected family legacies from uncertainty.”
“You mean from mothers.”
“From emotional decisions.”
Audrey looked at Julian.
He had heard versions of those words his entire life.
“What happened to Adrian?” she asked.
“He survived the fire.”
“Where is he?”
“He left the facility three years ago.”
“Did he work for you?”
“He worked against people more dangerous than I am.”
“Who?”
Victor did not answer.
Instead, he said, “Ask Julian what happened to his mother.”
The call ended.
Julian remained motionless.
Audrey watched him.
“What happened to her?”
“She became ill when I was seventeen.”
“What kind of illness?”
“I was never told.”
“And you accepted that?”
“I was seventeen.”
“You are not seventeen anymore.”
Julian looked toward Elias and Noah.
“No,” he said. “I’m not.”
Miriam returned forty minutes later.
The truck’s side mirror had been broken, and mud covered the doors.
“I lost him near the highway,” she said. “But I saw his face.”
Audrey held her breath.
“Was it Adrian?”
“Yes.”
The relief lasted only a second.
Miriam placed a folded note on the table.
“He threw this from his vehicle.”
Audrey opened it.
The handwriting belonged to her brother.
DO NOT TAKE THE DRIVE TO VICTOR.
DO NOT TRUST CHLOE.
JULIAN’S MOTHER IS ALIVE.
May you like
And beneath those words, Adrian had written:
ONE OF THE TWINS IS ALREADY REGISTERED AS VICTOR’S LEGAL SUCCESSOR.
