Chapter 14 - THE LAST HOSTAGE
Ryan called Claire immediately.
She did not answer.
Police rushed to the cottage.
The front door was open.
Claire was unconscious in the kitchen.
Rose was gone.
On the wall, Charles had left a message.
ONE HEIR FOR ANOTHER.
Ryan read the photograph sent by police.
“He wants Oliver.”
Maya held their son more tightly.
“He is never getting near him again.”
Detective Reeves entered the hospital room with his arm in a sling.
“We traced the call.”
“Where?”
Ryan asked.
“To the Whitmore family estate.”
The old mansion had been empty since Evelyn moved into the city residence.
Ryan had grown up there.
His father had died there.
Charles had chosen it deliberately.
“He wants me to return to the beginning.”
Reeves nodded.
“He also sent instructions.”
Ryan’s phone received a message.
COME ALONE.
BRING OLIVER.
Maya read it.
“No.”
“I’m not taking Oliver.”
“He’ll kill Rose.”
“Then we find another way.”
Ryan looked at Detective Reeves.
“Can we make Charles believe Oliver is with me?”
The detective considered it.
“We can place a child-sized figure in the rear seat.”
“We can use a recording of Oliver’s voice.”
Maya immediately shook her head.
“He will expect cameras.”
“He will expect police.”
“He knows every security system in that house.”
Ryan looked toward his mother’s guarded hospital room.
Evelyn had been treated for her injuries and formally charged.
She knew the estate better than anyone.
When Ryan entered her room, Evelyn was handcuffed to the bed.
She did not ask about her own case.
“Is Oliver safe?”
“Yes.”
“Then why are you here?”
“Charles took Rose.”
Evelyn closed her eyes.
“He found Claire.”
“He wants Oliver in exchange.”
“He won’t exchange them.”
“I know.”
Ryan sat across from her.
“How do I enter the estate without him seeing me?”
Evelyn studied her son.
“There is a passage behind the chapel.”
“It leads into your father’s library.”
“Does Charles know?”
“No.”
“Your father built it during the fraud investigation.”
“He used it to meet Peter.”
Ryan stood.
Evelyn grabbed his sleeve with her free hand.
“Ryan.”
He looked down.
“I am not asking for forgiveness.”
“Good.”
“I don’t deserve it.”
“No.”
“But I need you to know something.”
Her voice shook.
“I loved your father.”
“I was also afraid of losing everything.”
“Charles understood that fear.”
“He fed it until I could no longer tell protection from cruelty.”
Ryan pulled his sleeve free.
“You knew Maya was innocent.”
“Yes.”
“You watched her suffer.”
“Yes.”
“You drugged Oliver.”
“I gave him the first small dose.”
Ryan’s face went cold.
Evelyn began to cry.
“I told myself it would only make him sleepy.”
“I told myself the doctor knew what he was doing.”
“I told myself Maya would sign the papers and everyone would be safe.”
“You used my son’s body to win an argument.”
“Yes.”
Ryan walked toward the door.
Evelyn called after him.
“Charles keeps trophies.”
Ryan stopped.
“What kind?”
“Documents.”
“Recordings.”
“Objects from people he defeated.”
“He may still have your father’s original recording in the library safe.”
That evening, Ryan drove to the estate.
A covered shape sat in the back seat.
Police remained several miles away.
Maya stayed at the hospital with Oliver.
Detective Reeves and Peter entered through the chapel passage.
Ryan walked through the mansion’s front doors alone.
Charles’s voice came from the speaker system.
“Bring the boy to the library.”
Ryan pushed the covered wheelchair down the hall.
He entered the library.
Rose sat in a chair near the fireplace.
Her hands were tied.
Charles stood behind her.
His clothes were wet.
A fresh bandage covered his forehead.
“You survived.”
Ryan said.
“So did you.”
Charles looked at the wheelchair.
“Remove the blanket.”
“Release Rose first.”
Charles raised his gun.
“Remove it.”
Ryan pulled away the blanket.
The chair was empty.
Charles’s face changed.
“You brought police.”
“I brought the truth.”
The bookcase behind Charles opened.
Detective Reeves emerged with his weapon raised.
Charles grabbed Rose.
He pressed the gun against her head.
Peter appeared from the opposite passage.
Charles laughed wildly.
“All the ghosts came back.”
Ryan moved slowly closer.
“Let her go.”
“You still think this is about escape.”
Charles reached toward the desk.
His hand closed around a small remote.
Evelyn’s warning flashed through Ryan’s mind.
Charles kept trophies.
He also prepared exits.
“What does that control?”
Ryan asked.
Charles smiled.
“The gas line beneath this house.”
Everyone froze.
“If I release this button, the estate burns.”
Rose began to cry.
Charles looked at Ryan.
“Your father wanted to destroy the Whitmore legacy.”
“Now you can watch it disappear with everyone inside.”
Ryan took another step.
Charles lifted the remote.
“Choose.”
“Come with me and let the others leave.”
“Or try to save everyone and lose them all.”
Ryan stared at Rose.
Then he looked at Reeves.
Then Peter.
Finally, he looked at the portrait of his father above the fireplace.
“I choose neither.”
Ryan threw a heavy paperweight at the chandelier.
The lights shattered.
The room went dark.
A gun fired.
May you like
Rose screamed.
An explosion shook the mansion.
