Semua Bab TIED TO MY FATHER'S MURDERER: Bab 51 - Bab 58

The screen in front of Victor flickered, displaying the impossible. An access card, deactivated years ago, had just breached the estate. Twenty minutes. Only twenty minutes earlier. His gut clenched. “Isabella. Kevin. Hold position. Stay put. Don’t move from the office.” His voice was low, taut. They started to speak, but he cut them off before a word was out. “Don’t argue. Just stay there.”He didn’t wait for a response. His eyes met Riven’s across the security console. He understood without Victor saying a word. This wasn’t a standard break-in. This was something else entirely. “Riven, with me. Everyone else, perimeter search. Follow protocol. Silent and swift.” His security detail, well-oiled machines, fanned out, disappearing into the shadows of the estate.The card. The old access card. It belonged to Elias Thorne, a ghost from his past, a senior member of the Sable Communion who had supposedly vanished to Europe eight years ago. His security clearance should have been purged,

The phone vibrated in Isabella’s hand, Valeria’s name flashing on the screen. Her stomach twisted. She answered, her heart already hammering against her ribs. “Mama? What is it? Are you okay?”“Isabella.” Her mother’s voice was tight, thin with alarm. “There’s a man here. Malik. Malik Zacchaeus. He says Victor sent him. To… to protect me.”Her breath hitched. Malik. Here. Now. She didn’t waste a second. “Put me on speaker, Mama. Now.”A soft click, then the faint echo of her voice confirming the speaker was on. Isabella looked at Kevin, his face already pale. Riven and Daniel Reese stood beside him, their expressions a mix of confusion and building dread.“Malik Zacchaeus?” Riven murmured, eyes widening.Kevin stepped forward, his jaw tight. “No. My father wouldn’t. He promised Felix. He’d never… never harm Valeria.” He looked at Isabella, a desperate plea in his eyes. “He promised. This isn't him. Not like this.”“He might not have intended harm, Kevin,” Isabella countered, her voice

The sterile scent of antiseptic hit her first, a cold, sharp note that cut through the humid summer air as Dr. Petrovich led them down the gleaming hallway. Jason walked beside her, his hand a warm weight on her lower back, a silent anchor. They passed a glass-walled common room, and her breath hitched. There, through the clear pane, she was.Her mother, Valeria, sat in an overstuffed armchair, a cup of tea balanced in her hands. Her posture was relaxed, almost serene. And across from her, leaning forward slightly, was Malik Zacchaeous. The man who had haunted Isabella’s nightmares, the phantom limb of her father’s disappearance. But the fear that used to contort her mother’s features whenever his name was whispered was gone, replaced by an unsettling calm. There was no tension in the air, no silent battle of wills. It was just… a conversation.“Mom?” The word was barely a whisper as the doctor opened the door, ushering them inside.Valeria’s head snapped up, and a radiant smile broke

Victor stood beside the car, the cool evening air doing little to settle the tremor in his hands. The phone, an unfamiliar model Isabella had handed him moments ago, vibrated. “It’s him, Victor,” she had whispered, her eyes wide with an unspoken plea. Fifteen years. Fifteen years since he heard that voice. He pressed it to his ear, his heart hammering against his ribs.“Felix?” His voice was a raw croak, barely recognizable even to him.A beat of static, then a low chuckle. “Took you long enough, fratello.”The sound resonated deep inside him, a long-buried chord finally struck. Tears stung his eyes, hot and unexpected. “I… I thought you were dead, Felix. Daniel Re—”“I know what Daniel said, Victor,” he interrupted gently, his tone surprisingly devoid of malice. “I heard the stories. You shouldn’t blame yourself for believing him. He was convincing, our Daniel. Always was.”Victor’s breath hitched. “But… the blood, the confirmation, the funeral… I saw it all.”“And you accepted it, l