CHAPTER 7 — SOPHIA'S FINAL MESSAGE
CHAPTER 7 — SOPHIA'S FINAL MESSAGE
The following morning, Marcus entered Dominic's office carrying a battered cardboard box.
"It was delivered anonymously."
"No return address?"
Marcus shook his head.
"It was left at the front gate before sunrise."
Inside were old photographs.
Letters.
A faded diary.
Everything belonged to Sophia.
Emma recognized the handwriting instantly.
"That's my sister's."
Dominic carefully opened the diary.
The first entries spoke of ordinary life.
Coffee dates.
Rainy walks through Brooklyn.
Dreams of marrying Dominic.
Then the tone changed.
One page caught his attention.
March 18
Dominic thinks leaving me will keep me safe.
He's wrong.
Someone has been following me.
The next page.
April 2
I saw the same black sedan again.
They know where I work.
Another.
April 19
If anything happens to me, it wasn't an accident.
Emma covered her mouth.
She had never seen these pages.
Dominic kept reading.
The final entry was unfinished.
The ink ended abruptly across the page.
If Dominic ever reads this...
Tell him...
Nothing more.
The sentence simply stopped.
As though she had been interrupted forever.
Hidden beneath the diary lay a sealed envelope.
Across the front, written in Sophia's handwriting:
For Dominic. Only if I'm gone.
His hands trembled as he opened it.
Inside was a single letter.
Dominic,
If you're reading this, then fate chose a future neither of us wanted.
Please don't waste your life blaming yourself.
You always believed you had to carry the darkness alone.
But love was never your weakness.
It was your greatest strength.
If we never meet again, promise me one thing.
If you ever have children... protect their hearts before you protect your empire.
Money can rebuild houses.
Power can rebuild businesses.
But a frightened child grows into a frightened adult.
Don't let that happen.
I will always love you.
— Sophia
By the time Dominic reached the final line...
His vision had blurred with tears.
Emma quietly stepped outside, giving him privacy.
Marcus did the same.
Neither man spoke.
That afternoon, Dominic gathered Lily and Ethan in the garden.
He knelt before them.
"I have something important to tell you."
Lily squeezed her brother's hand.
"You don't have to be scared anymore."
Both children looked uncertain.
Dominic continued.
"I'm changing everything."
"No more business trips."
"No more disappearing."
"No more choosing work over you."
Ethan tilted his head.
"You promise?"
Dominic smiled through tears.
"I swear."
The little boy wrapped his arms around his father.
Lily joined them a second later.
Emma watched from the porch, silently wiping away tears.
For the first time since arriving at the estate...
The mansion sounded like a home.
That peace lasted less than an hour.
Marcus's phone buzzed violently.
His face lost all color.
"Boss..."
Dominic looked up.
"What is it?"
Marcus turned the screen toward him.
It was a live video feed.
Someone had hacked the mansion's security system.
On the screen appeared Damien Cross.
He smiled calmly into the camera.
"Good afternoon, Dominic."
Behind him...
Tied to a chair...
Was the Police Commissioner.
Bruised.
Terrified.
Damien leaned closer to the camera.
"You've been chasing the wrong enemy."
Dominic's eyes narrowed.
"What are you talking about?"
Damien laughed.
"I didn't kill Sophia."
Silence.
Then he delivered the revelation that changed everything.
"I tried to save her."
The video abruptly cut to black.
A single GPS coordinate appeared on the screen.
Marcus stared at it.
"It's an abandoned church... outside Albany."
Dominic slowly stood.
He looked toward Emma.
Then at Lily and Ethan playing in the garden.
Finally, he looked back at Marcus.
"If Damien is telling the truth..."
May you like
His voice became deadly quiet.
"...then the person who murdered Sophia has been hiding in plain sight for twelve years."
