Vanessa threw Mia’s backpack into the koi pond on her first school morning.

We waited until mid-morning to move.

Elizabeth identified three names on the page—men who had served Julian for decades but had grown wealthy and powerful in their own right. Men who would have more to lose than to gain from Julian’s downfall.

“First we go to Richard Thorne,” Elizabeth said as we walked. “He is a judge. He helped Julian forge documents. But he also has children and grandchildren. He will not risk his family’s future.”

We reached Thorne’s estate by mid-afternoon. It was guarded, but not like the Sanctuary. Elizabeth walked up to the gate alone. Adrian and I waited hidden just out of sight.

She spoke to the guard. Ten minutes later, the gate opened. Elizabeth looked back at us and nodded. We walked through together.

Judge Thorne met us in his study. He was an older man with silver hair and a stern face. He listened in silence while Elizabeth spoke, while Adrian laid out the ledger page on his desk.

When she finished, Thorne sat back in his chair. He looked at the names. At the payments. At his own name written clearly in black ink.

“Julian will kill me,” he said quietly.

“Julian will sacrifice you to save himself,” Elizabeth corrected. “He told us himself. He plans to blame everything on you. On all of you.”

Thorne looked up sharply. “He said that?”

“He wrote it,” Elizabeth lied smoothly. “In the ledger. Which we still hold.”

Thorne stood up and walked to the window. He stood there for a very long time, hands clasped behind his back.

Finally, he turned around. “What do you want from me?”

“Help us expose him,” Adrian said. “Testify. Use your influence. Arrest him before he escapes.”

Thorne hesitated. He looked at me. At Elizabeth. At the page on his desk.

Then he reached for his phone.

“I will call two others,” he said. “Senator Hale and Chief of Police Mercer. Distant cousins. Both named here. Both terrified.”

He made the calls. Twenty minutes later, the senator arrived. An hour after that, the chief of police. They walked into the study, grim-faced and silent. They read the page. They listened to Elizabeth. And slowly, reluctantly, they began to agree.

Julian had been playing them all. He had been building a wall of protection using their crimes. And when the time came… he would throw every single one of them to the wolves.

“He thinks he is untouchable,” the senator said. “But if we all stand together…”

“He falls,” the chief finished.

Relief washed over me. It was working. We were winning.

Then Thorne’s phone rang.

He answered. He listened. His face went pale.

He lowered the phone slowly and looked at us.

“Julian knows you are here.”

Elizabeth stood up instantly. “How?”

“One of my staff… he has been on Julian’s payroll for years.” Thorne walked to the window. “He is outside now. With twenty armed men. Surrounding the house.”

Adrian grabbed my hand. “There must be another way out.”

“Front gate. Side gate. Back door. All surrounded.” Thorne turned back, his expression desperate. “He gave one demand.”

“What demand?” Elizabeth demanded.

“Hand over the girl. And the page. And he will let the rest of you live.”

Elizabeth stepped forward. “Tell him no.”

Thorne hesitated. Sweat beaded on his forehead. He looked at the page. At his name. At the window where Julian’s men waited.

Then he took a step toward me.

“I am sorry,” he said quietly. “But I have too much to lose.”

Elizabeth drew in a sharp breath. “Richard… do not do this.”

“I have no choice.” He nodded toward the door. “Take her. And give Julian what he wants.”

The chief of police and the senator exchanged a look. Then they stepped aside. They would not help. But they would not stop Thorne either.

Adrian stepped between me and Thorne. “Touch her… and you will have to kill me first.”

Thorne hesitated. “Do not make this harder than it needs to be. Julian will not hurt her. He only wants to take her away. To raise her properly.”

“Liar,” Elizabeth said. “You know what he plans.”

“I know I cannot save everyone,” Thorne said. “And I will not lose everything for a child I do not even know.”

He signaled to his men. Two officers stepped forward—Julian’s men, disguised as Thorne’s security. They grabbed Adrian. He fought back, landing a solid blow to one man’s jaw, but there were too many. They dragged him away, struggling and shouting my name.

Then they came for me.

I backed away until my back hit the wall. Elizabeth tried to intervene, but they held her back. She screamed and fought, but it was useless.

One of the men grabbed my arm. His grip was rough and painful. I looked toward Thorne.

“Please,” I said. “Don’t let him take me.”

Thorne looked away.

They dragged me out of the house. Down the steps. Toward the waiting black limousine. The back window rolled down.

Julian sat inside.

He smiled when he saw me. A cold, satisfied smile.

“Welcome home, Mia.”

I tried to pull away, but they lifted me off my feet and threw me into the backseat beside him. Julian slammed the door. The car pulled away instantly.

Through the tinted window, I saw Adrian break free and race after us. He shouted my name. He ran until he could not run anymore. Then he stood in the road, watching helplessly as we carried me away.

Julian reached over and patted my hand.

“Now,” he said smoothly. “Tell me where the page is. And I might make this easy for you.”

I looked him in the eye.

“It’s not with me.”

Julian’s smile faded. “Where is it?”

“Safe. With someone who will publish it if I do not return.” I leaned back against the leather seat. “You traded Vanessa. You betrayed Elizabeth. You bought Thorne. But you cannot buy the truth. And you cannot buy me.”

Julian stared at me. For a long moment, I thought he might strike me. Instead, he laughed—a low, chilling sound.

“You are Victoria’s daughter,” he said. “Through and through.”

He signaled to the driver. “To the Sanctuary. And make sure no one follows.”

Then he turned back to me. His expression hardened.

“You think you have won, Mia. But you have simply walked into the one place where no one can hear you scream. Thorne will say nothing. Elizabeth will be hunted. And Adrian… will be broken.”