Chapter 45
Days passed with me locked in my room, taking showers, eating meals, and sneaking hidden video calls from the bathroom to check updates. There was nothing new about Mr. Anderson–just the same chairperson of Anderson Group of Companies. My father was busy convincing the board to hand my inheritance to Nicolai, who had joined the company a year ago. His focus was always elsewhere, but he followed my father diligently, ensuring he remained blind to Adeline’s true actions. At least he didn’t know about my mother or any of Adeline’s plans. That gave me some ease, even if I shouldn’t have wanted it.
After ending my call with Jina, I leaned against the bathroom counter, my fingers tapping against the cool surface. I needed something to do before I lost my mind.
A knock on my door pulled me from my thoughts. Too soon for dinner. I shut the bathroom door carefully before opening the bedroom door. Franny tiptoed inside, pressing a finger to her lips before shutting it behind her. In reality, she didn’t have to be this careful–this side of the mansion was deserted, far enough that even loud noises wouldn’t reach the main quarters where Mr. and Mrs. Anderson slept.
She flopped onto my bed.
“I talked to Mom. I have no idea what’s gotten into her, but she insists you stay for another three days.”
“I know.”
“Oh! Why don’t you fight back for once? You always do what she says. You’re an adult! And it’s your birthday in two days!” she whined. “I even planned a little party and told the staff to bake a cake.”
“Don’t worry. I can have the cake afterward.”
“This won’t do!”
“Franny, I’m not that hung up on my birthday,” I tried to tell her.
“No, listen to me.” She stood and pulled me down beside her, her grip firm with determination. I humored her. “If we go out on your birthday, it’ll be obvious. But Mom and Dad are leaving the day before. How about I sneak you out?”
I studied her. She took this too seriously, but she did this every year.
“Last time you tried something like that, it didn’t end well.”
“Oh, this time, trust me. I’ll come get you in the evening. No one will be here, and by the time we’re back, no one will care.”
“Where are they going?”
“Some charity party. I don’t know. But that’s not important! Your birthday is!”
“You’re sweet, Franny. I appreciate it, but we can have a belated party,” I said, trying to comfort her. But in truth, the night of my birthday was my best chance to leave.
“You can’t be serious!”
“I don’t want to upset Mother.”
“You don’t love me,” she pouted.
I patted her head. “I do, I do.” And, it was the truth. She was the only one who never treated me like an outsider.
“Then please, please come with me!”
I considered it. If I went out with Franny into a crowded place, it would be easier to slip away unnoticed. I could send her a text later, telling her I was fine, and she’d go home.
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Chapter 45
“We’ll take my driver,” I said.
She grinned, practically bouncing in excitement before leaving my room. Everything didn’t need to be difficult. It would be easy.
One more day.
I turned on my laptop and reopened the CCTV link to Patronus. My mother.
There she was, lying in that abandoned facility, her pale skin seeming even paler under the dim lighting. Maybe it was just the bad angle. Once, she must have been beautiful, but now her lips were dry, her face gaunt. She would need extensive therapy to recover.
Would she even recognize me?
I closed my eyes. A vague memory surfaced. A rare sunny day in New York, her red hair blowing in the breeze as she pushed me on a swing. The sound of her laughter, the way she tucked her hair behind her ear, the glint of her teardrop earrings catching the sun.
Eda Harries. She had been the heiress of a renowned jewelry brand, named after her. When she married my father, she merged it with Anderson Group of Companies. But when she discovered his betrayal and tried to run, she never got the chance. The accident changed everything. Declaring her dead was the only reason Tommen and Adeline Anderson could be legally married.
I would take her far away from here. We didn’t need the Anderson fortune.
Killian might not like that plan, but we hadn’t talked about it yet. We had time. There were other things I needed to clarify with him first. If he was serious about the long–term.
One more day.
I barely slept that night, pacing restlessly. Updates kept coming in through text–movements around Patronus, shifts in security rotations. They tracked every new arrival and departure. No sign of Adeline or Christen Meng yet.
Franny had said my father and Adeline were going to a charity event, but was that the truth?
October 20, 2025, 10 AM.
The digital clock glowed beside my bed. I sat at my desk, calm, composed, bracing myself.
It had begun.
My laptop displayed every security frame of the abandoned facility. There were three layers of protection. The outer perimeter was a dense grid of motion detectors and infrared cameras. The second layer consisted of rotating guards, some stationed, some patrolling. And the third–inside the building itself–housed the elite, those directly answering to Christen Meng. They moved in pairs, well–trained, armed.
The feed showed nothing unusual. The guards still stood at their posts. Then, slowly, they began disappearing
No bodies. No gunfire. Just vanishing.
The outer guards stationed at the entrance–gone. One moment they were there, the next, the camera feed showed only empty space. The patrolling guards–one rounded a corner and never came back.
The silent elegance of the operation sent a shiver down my spine.
The Shadow Knights had arrived.
Killian and his team were ghosts. No shadows, no sound. A guard near the gate twitched slightly before slumping against the wall. Unconscious. Another, near the main hallway, turned his head slightly–then froze, eyes glassy as he was dragged into the darkness.
Nothing disrupted the stillness.
Only when they reached the facility’s core–where my mother lay–did their presence become tangible. A few of the knights stepped into the dim, sterile
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lighting. Their sleek black gear blended into the shadows, faces covered. They moved with precise efficiency, clearing the final obstacles with swift, controlled force.
One of them reached my mother’s bedside. I couldn’t see his face, but I knew who he was.
Killian.
He stood still for a moment, staring down at her. Then, slowly, he reached out, checking her pulse before giving a subtle nod.
It was time.
This was it, I thought. But before I could sigh in relief, two figures emerged behind him–both men. I sat there, frozen in my seat, as all the Shadow Knights surrounded them.
One face I saw every day in my home.
The other, only in photos.
Christen Meng and Tommen Anderson–my father.
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