Chapter 11 - THE TRAITOR BESIDE US
The gun was pointed at my daughter.
For one second...
I forgot how to breathe.
The world became painfully quiet.
All I could see was the weapon.
The tiny metal barrel.
The hand holding it.
And the man behind it.
Marcus.
Stellan's right-hand man.
The person who had stood beside him for years.
The person Stellan trusted with his life.
"No."
The word escaped my lips.
Marcus looked almost sad.
"I'm sorry, Selene."
I held Fern tighter.
"You were protecting him."
His eyes moved to Stellan.
"That was the problem."
Stellan stepped forward.
Slow.
Dangerous.
"Put the gun down."
Marcus laughed softly.
"I knew this day would come."
Every guard in the room raised their weapons.
But nobody fired.
Because Marcus wasn't just a soldier.
He knew every security code.
Every escape route.
Every weakness.
He knew this mansion better than anyone.
"Why?"
Stellan's voice was ice.
"Why did you betray me?"
Marcus looked at him.
"You really don't know?"
A bitter smile appeared.
"You were always blind when it came to family."
Something changed in Stellan's face.
"Who sent you?"
Marcus didn't answer.
He looked at Fern.
"She is the last piece."
My stomach twisted.
"Piece?"
Marcus looked at me.
"You still don't understand."
"I understand enough."
My voice shook.
"You are pointing a gun at a baby."
For a second, something like shame crossed his face.
Then it disappeared.
"I don't want to hurt her."
"Then lower the gun."
"I can't."
"Why?"
His answer was quiet.
"Because if I don't bring her back, everyone I love dies."
Silence.
Stellan's eyes narrowed.
"Who has them?"
Marcus looked away.
And that tiny movement told us everything.
Someone was controlling him.
"Who?"
No answer.
Stellan moved closer.
"Marcus."
His voice changed.
Not anger.
Something worse.
Disappointment.
"You were my brother."
Marcus's face tightened.
"And you were never mine."
The words hit harder than a bullet.
Before anyone moved...
the mansion exploded with sound.
A window shattered.
Smoke filled the room.
Everyone dropped.
I fell to the ground, protecting Fern.
Hands grabbed me.
I screamed.
But then another hand pulled me back.
Stellan.
He wrapped one arm around me and Fern while firing with the other.
The man was terrifying.
Not because he could kill.
Because he was willing to die.
"Stay with me!"
I looked at him.
For the first time...
I didn't see Stellan Cross.
I saw Adrian.
The man who held me in the rain.
The man who promised he would protect me.
The attack lasted less than a minute.
But it felt like an hour.
When the smoke cleared...
Marcus was gone.
And so was Fern's blanket.
Stellan looked around.
Then his face changed.
"What?"
I followed his eyes.
A small object was lying on the floor.
A hospital bracelet.
Not Fern's.
Another one.
Mrs. Thornbury's warning came back.
There were two babies.
I picked it up.
The name was faded.
But still readable.
My hands started shaking.
Because the bracelet belonged to:
Evelyn Cross.
Stellan saw it.
His face went completely white.
"No."
I looked at him.
"Who is Evelyn?"
He didn't answer.
"Stellan."
His voice was barely a whisper.
"My sister."
I froze.
"You never told me you had a sister."
"Because I thought she was dead."
The room became silent.
Then the phone on the table rang.
Everyone stared.
Nobody wanted to answer.
Finally, Stellan picked it up.
"Who is this?"
A woman's voice answered.
Calm.
Cold.
Familiar.
"Hello, brother."
Stellan froze.
I watched his face lose all color.
"That's impossible."
The woman laughed.
"No."
A pause.
"What's impossible is that you thought you could hide my niece from me forever."
My heart stopped.
Niece.
She meant Fern.
Stellan's hand tightened around the phone.
"Evelyn."
The voice smiled.
"I've waited a long time to meet my brother's daughter."
Then the call ended.
Stellan stood completely still.
And I realized something terrifying.
May you like
The enemy wasn't outside.
The enemy was family.
