CHAPTER 5 — THE GHOST OF SOPHIA
CHAPTER 5 — THE GHOST OF SOPHIA
Victoria spent the night in custody.
Dominic spent the night unable to sleep.
He sat in the nursery where Lily and Ethan had once slept as babies.
Tiny fingerprints still marked the old wooden rocking chair.
A faded stuffed rabbit rested in the corner.
He remembered buying it after Lily was born.
He had been present for exactly twenty-three minutes before rushing away to deal with a shipment at the docks.
Back then, he believed providing money was enough.
Now he understood what his children had actually needed.
Their father.
The following morning, Marcus arrived carrying another file.
"We found something."
Dominic looked up.
"It concerns Sophia."
His heartbeat quickened.
Marcus spread several documents across the table.
"The accident report never made sense."
"Why?"
"The crash happened on a straight road."
"No rain."
"No speeding."
"No alcohol."
"No mechanical failure."
Dominic studied the photographs.
Sophia's small sedan had struck a concrete barrier.
It looked ordinary.
Until Marcus produced enlarged images.
"Look here."
Dominic leaned closer.
Tiny circular holes.
Near the brake line.
His breathing slowed.
"Bullet holes."
Marcus nodded.
"The brake system didn't fail."
"It was destroyed."
Dominic stood so abruptly the chair crashed backward.
"They murdered her."
"We believe so."
"But we still don't know who ordered it."
Dominic stared at Sophia's smiling driver's license photo.
Twelve years.
He had spent twelve years believing she'd simply moved on after they separated.
He had never searched hard enough.
Never questioned the official report.
Now guilt settled like lead inside his chest.
Later that afternoon, Dominic visited Emma for the first time.
She was sitting in the estate garden while Lily painted butterflies beside her.
Ethan chased a golden retriever across the grass.
For the first time, the children looked... peaceful.
Emma noticed him approaching.
"You wanted to speak with me?"
Dominic nodded.
"I owe you an apology."
She remained silent.
"I failed your sister."
Emma looked down.
"And I failed you."
Still nothing.
"I also failed my children."
Emma finally spoke.
"They don't need perfect."
He looked at her.
"They just need someone who stays."
The words landed harder than any accusation.
He sat beside her.
"I didn't know Sophia died."
"I know."
"I should have."
Emma smiled sadly.
"She believed you would come."
Dominic froze.
"What?"
"The last time I saw her alive..."
Emma wiped away a tear.
"...she still wore your engagement ring."
His heart stopped.
"I thought she gave it back."
Emma slowly reached into her pocket.
She unfolded a tiny velvet pouch.
Inside lay a simple silver ring.
Sophia's ring.
"She carried it until the day she died."
Dominic couldn't breathe.
Emma whispered,
"She never stopped loving you."
That evening, Marcus received an encrypted message from one of his undercover contacts.
His expression darkened immediately.
"What is it?" Dominic asked.
Marcus handed him the phone.
Only one sentence appeared.
DON'T TRUST THE POLICE COMMISSIONER.
Below it was a photograph.
The Police Commissioner shaking hands with...
Damien Cross.
Taken just three nights earlier.
Marcus looked grim.
"If Damien has the commissioner..."
Dominic finished the sentence.
"...then Victoria's arrest won't last."
As if summoned by fate, Marcus's phone rang.
He answered.
His face turned pale.
"They've released her."
Dominic slowly stood.
"On whose orders?"
Marcus swallowed.
"The commissioner personally signed the release."
Outside, thunder rolled across the Long Island sky.
Miles away, Victoria climbed into a waiting black SUV.
A man sat inside, his face hidden in shadow.
She looked at him nervously.
"They know about Sophia."
The man smiled.
"I expected they would."
Victoria frowned.
"What do we do now?"
The stranger turned toward her.
For the first time, his scarred face became visible.
Damien Cross.
"No," he said calmly.
"We're no longer hunting Dominic Blackwell."
May you like
He looked toward the mansion in the distance.
"We're hunting his children."
