جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 30

The room seemed to narrow around Daphne.Mason had spent the previous evening publicly declaring his love for her. He had held her hand beneath camera flashes and spoken about the future they would build together.Then, after midnight, he had accessed sealed files connected to Warren’s disappearance.The cold certainty inside her sharpened.“Close it,” she told Priya.Priya blinked. “What?”“Close the archive. Clear the screen.”“Daphne—”“Now.”Priya obeyed.Daphne gathered Warren’s notes, the recorder, and the Halcyon Quay folder. Lila reached for her coat.“You think someone is watching the system?”“I think we should assume they are.”Priya shut her laptop. “I can drive you to Evelyn’s.”“No. Go back to Arkett. Act normal.”“Normal is not an option anymore.”“Exactly. That is why you need to look normal.”Priya hugged her tightly before leaving.“Call me when you get there.”“I will.”Evelyn Sterling lived in a small brick house west of the city. Daphne had visited it dozens of ti

Arkett Holdings Tower rose above Toronto’s Financial District in silver glass and black stone. Daphne had entered it thousands of times. Employees greeted her by name. Executives stood when she walked into meetings. Her family name was carved into the lobby wall.But that morning, she felt like an intruder.A digital display near reception showed Arkett’s promotional film: bright towers, smiling families, waterfront parks.BUILDING TOMORROW.Her father had spent his life building tomorrow.How many people had been buried beneath it?“Ms. Beckett?”The receptionist smiled nervously. “Mr. Beckett asked that you come to his office when you arrive.”“Did he say why?”“No, ma’am.”“Tell him I’ll see him later. I have a meeting with Community Development.”The receptionist hesitated. “He said it was important.”“So is my work.”Daphne walked away before the woman could reply.Priya arrived at her office ten minutes later and closed the door behind her.“You came in,” she said.“I work here.

Warren crossed the loading bay with every remaining ounce of strength.Cold wind slipped through his thin shirt as snow hit his face. His bare feet scraped against the ice and gravel, but he kept going, barely noticing the pain.At the fence, he found the gate locked.Of course it was.He ran along the perimeter until he spotted a damaged section beside a stack of steel pipes. The lower edge had bent upward from the frozen ground.Not enough room for a man.Maybe enough for a desperate one.Warren dropped to his knees and shoved at the metal. The fence scraped over the ice.An inch.Then another.Behind him, the loading-bay door burst open.“Sterling!”Warren forced his shoulder beneath the gap. Wire caught his back, tearing through his shirt and skin. He pushed harder.For one terrible moment, he was stuck—half beneath the fence, half exposed.Boots crunched through the snow behind him.“Get him!”Warren dragged himself forward.The wire sliced across his ribs.Then he rolled free on

Across the city, Evelyn Sterling sat alone at her kitchen table with both hands around a mug of tea that had gone cold.Her house had never felt so quiet.For seven months, people had told her Warren was gone.They said he had stolen money. Betrayed Daphne Beckett. Fled the country.The newspapers had called him a fraud. They had printed photographs of Daphne looking devastated and Warren looking guilty.Evelyn had never believed them.Warren had inherited Daniel’s stubbornness, his conscience, and his habit of carrying every burden alone. But he had not inherited dishonesty.She knew that as surely as she knew her own name.In the first weeks after Warren disappeared, Evelyn had called hospitals, police stations, friends, former classmates, and former employers. She had hired an investigator she could barely afford. She had searched Warren’s studio after the authorities released it.Nothing explained where he had gone.Nothing explained why he had vanished.A glossy engagement announ

At the Toronto Police Service marine unit, Evelyn sat beneath a harsh ceiling light, untouched tea cooling beside her.Detective Harris entered carrying a file.“Mrs. Sterling,” he said, taking the chair across from her. “Thank you for waiting.”“Have you identified him?”“Yes. Thomas Keene. Thirty-nine years old. Former employee of a security logistics company that dissolved three years ago.”Evelyn waited.“He had a minor criminal record,” Harris continued. “Assault, unlawful confinement, and several charges later withdrawn.”“Unlawful confinement?” she repeated.“Yes.”“Was he convicted?”“No. Witnesses withdrew cooperation.”Evelyn looked down at her hands. “Why would a man like that have a photograph of my son?”“We do not know.”“But you have theories.”“We found Mr. Keene’s vehicle near the industrial docks. Inside were false identification documents, a burner phone, and a notebook with addresses.”Evelyn looked up sharply. “Was my address in it?”Harris did not answer.Her fac