CHAPTER EIGHT: THE MIDNIGHT VISITOR

The gunshot shattered the silence of Blackwood Mansion.

Isabella screamed.

"Alexander!"

The lights went out completely.

For a moment, darkness swallowed the entire mansion.

Then came the sound of hurried footsteps.

"Isabella!" Alexander's voice thundered through the hallway. "Where are you?"

"I'm here!"

A strong hand suddenly grabbed her wrist.

She gasped.

"Don't scream," a familiar voice whispered.

Alexander.

He pulled her behind him as another gunshot echoed through the mansion.

"Stay close to me."

Isabella clutched his arm.

"What is happening?"

"I don't know yet."

His voice was cold, but his grip on her hand was firm.

A security guard rushed toward them.

"Mr. Blackwood! Someone has breached the east entrance!"

Alexander's expression hardened.

"Lock down the mansion. Nobody leaves."

"Yes, sir."

Alexander turned toward Isabella.

"Go to my office. Lock the door."

She shook her head.

"I'm not leaving you."

His eyes met hers.

For a brief moment, something softened in his expression.

"Isabella, please."

She hesitated.

Then she nodded.

---

Twenty minutes later, the mansion was secure.

No intruder had been found.

But Victoria was missing.

Isabella stood inside Alexander's office, staring at the empty chair.

"Where is she?"

Alexander paced the room.

"I don't know."

"She was here moments ago!"

"I know."

Isabella swallowed.

"Do you think someone took her?"

Alexander stopped.

"Possibly."

She looked at him.

"Who would want to hurt Victoria?"

His expression darkened.

"Daniel Cross."

The name made Isabella's heart skip.

Her biological father.

The man she had never met.

The man her mother had feared.

"Why would he hurt her?"

Alexander stared at the window.

"Because Victoria knows something that could destroy him."

Isabella's phone suddenly vibrated.

An unknown number.

She opened the message.

Midnight. The old bridge. Come alone if you want to know the truth about your mother.

Her heart began pounding.

Another message followed.

Don't tell Alexander.

She stared at the screen.

The old bridge.

The same place where her mother had supposedly died.

---

At 11:45 p.m., Isabella quietly left her bedroom.

She wore a black jacket over her dress and carried her phone.

The mansion was silent.

Security guards stood near the entrance, but Isabella managed to slip through a side door.

She knew she was taking a risk.

But she needed answers.

Twenty minutes later, she arrived at the old bridge.

The night was cold.

The river beneath the bridge moved quietly.

"Hello?" she called.

A figure emerged from the shadows.

A tall man wearing a black coat.

His face was partially hidden.

"Isabella Williams."

She stepped backward.

"Who are you?"

The man removed his hood.

Her breath caught.

He had dark hair, sharp features, and eyes that seemed strangely familiar.

"My name is Daniel Cross."

Isabella's heart pounded.

"My father?"

He nodded.

"Your biological father."

She stared at him.

"Why did you abandon me?"

Daniel's expression changed.

"I didn't abandon you."

"Then why did I grow up believing Richard Williams was my father?"

"Because your mother wanted to protect you."

"From you?"

Daniel looked away.

"From the people who wanted to destroy us."

Isabella's hands trembled.

"Who killed my mother?"

Daniel stepped closer.

"Alexander Blackwood."

The words struck her like lightning.

"No."

Daniel reached into his coat and pulled out a photograph.

It showed Alexander standing beside a damaged car.

The same car her mother had been driving the night she died.

Isabella stared at it.

"That's impossible."

Daniel's voice was cold.

"Your mother was killed because she discovered the truth about Alexander's family."

Isabella shook her head.

"You're lying."

"Ask him yourself."

Suddenly, headlights appeared at the far end of the bridge.

A black car approached.

Daniel's expression changed.

"He's here."

Isabella turned.

Alexander stepped out of the car.

His eyes immediately found hers.

"Isabella!"

Daniel smiled bitterly.

"Well, well. The billionaire has finally arrived."

Alexander's jaw tightened.

"Daniel."

Daniel spread his arms.

"Did you tell her the truth?"

Alexander walked toward them.

"Stay away from her."

Daniel laughed.

"She's my daughter."

Alexander stopped.

"You're not her father."

Daniel's smile disappeared.

"What did you say?"

Alexander looked directly at Isabella.

"Daniel Cross is not your biological father."

The world seemed to stop.

Isabella stared at him.

"What?"

Alexander pulled a document from his jacket.

"Your real father is someone else."

Daniel's face turned pale.

"No..."

Alexander held up the document.

"And I know exactly who he is."

Before Isabella could speak, a gunshot rang through the night.

Daniel collapsed.

"Daniel!"

Isabella screamed.

Alexander grabbed her and pulled her behind the car.

Another shot struck the bridge railing.

Someone was watching them from the darkness.

Alexander drew his weapon.

"Stay down!"

Isabella clutched his arm.

"Who is shooting at us?"

Alexander looked toward the shadows.

Then he whispered a name.

"Clara."

END OF CHAPTER EIGHT