Tous les chapitres de : Chapitre 71 - Chapitre 80

Agent Park's car screamed through the empty streets toward the harbor. My hands gripped the dashboard so hard my knuckles turned white. Behind us, three more FBI vehicles followed with sirens blaring. The city blurred past in streaks of light and shadow."How long since you sent the message?" Agent Park asked. Her foot pressed the accelerator harder.I checked my phone. "Twelve minutes. Brock said Chloe would wait ten minutes for his call. We're already past the deadline.""Then we pray she's stalling. That she's waiting a little longer to be sure." Agent Park spoke into her radio. "All units converge on harbor locations near Statue of Liberty viewing areas. Suspect is Chloe Winters, white female, early thirties. Hostage is Emma Chen, seven years old. Consider suspect armed and extremely dangerous."My mind wouldn't stop racing. Chloe Winters. A name I had barely thought about in a decade. A face I had almost completely forgotten. But she had remembered me. She had spent ten years nur

I walked out of the prison into bright afternoon sunlight. Marcus stood beside his car in the parking lot, exactly where he said he would be. When he saw my face, he opened his arms. I walked into them and let myself fall apart for just a moment."It's done," I whispered against his chest. "It's really done.""How do you feel?"I pulled back and thought about it. "Empty. Sad. Relieved. All of it at once." I looked back at the gray prison building. "He's completely broken, Marcus. He actually believes his own lies now. In his mind, I'm the villain who destroyed him.""Does that bother you?""No. Not anymore. I know the truth. Emma knows the truth. That's all that matters." I took a deep breath. "Let's go home. I want to see my daughter."The drive home was quiet but peaceful. Marcus played soft music on the radio. I watched the city pass by outside the window. People going about their normal lives. Shopping. Laughing. Walking dogs. Existing in a world where their ex-husbands weren't in

The trap was set. Now we waited.Three days passed with no movement from Jessica or Richard. Agent Park's surveillance teams watched them constantly. Jessica stayed in a luxury hotel in Manhattan. Richard continued his normal business activities. They didn't meet again. Didn't communicate through any channels the FBI could detect."Maybe they know we're watching," Marcus suggested on the third night. We sat in our living room reviewing the day's surveillance reports while Emma slept upstairs."Jessica is too smart to be that obvious," I said. "She's planning something. We just haven't figured out what yet."My phone rang. Agent Park."We've got movement. Jessica just left her hotel in a taxi. She's heading toward the waterfront."My pulse quickened. "The harbor?""Looks that way. And Bethany, Richard Shaw just got in his car. He's heading in the same direction."This was it. Whatever they had planned was happening now."I'm coming," I said."Absolutely not. This is an FBI operation. Y

Six months passed before the trials began. Six months of depositions and evidence gathering and legal maneuvering. Six months of trying to build a normal life while the past still hung over us like a storm cloud.Emma started second grade. She made friends. She joined the art club. She had playdates and birthday parties and all the ordinary childhood experiences she'd been denied for so long. Dr. Chen reduced her therapy sessions to once a week. The nightmares were rare now. She was healing.Nott Designs continued thriving. Victoria had proven herself so capable during the crisis that I promoted her to President. I kept the title of Creative Director but stepped back from daily operations. I wanted more time with Emma. More time with Marcus. More time to actually live instead of just survive.Marcus's photography exhibition "Survival and Grace" opened to critical acclaim. His images of our journey, of Emma's resilience, of my transformation, resonated with people around the world. Mus

The foundation took shape over the following months. I called it "Phoenix Rising: Support for Survivors." The name felt right. Rising from ashes. Being reborn stronger.Diana agreed to serve on the board. Agent Park, now retired from the FBI, came on as security consultant. Dr. Chen joined as clinical director. And Victoria, who had thrived at Nott Designs, helped set up the business side.We secured funding through a combination of my personal investment and donations from fashion industry leaders who wanted to support survivors. The first office opened six months after the trials ended. A small space in downtown Manhattan with room for legal consultations, therapy sessions, and support groups.The demand was overwhelming. Within the first month, we had two hundred applications for services. Stories of betrayal, manipulation, financial abuse. So many people carrying trauma they thought they had to bear alone.Emma visited the office after school sometimes. She'd sit in the corner col