Chapter 6 - The Truth Buried Beneath the Empire
The first thing I did was run.
Not because I was afraid of Adrian.
Not because I was afraid of the person holding Lily.
Because every second mattered.
"My daughter is in that room."
My voice barely sounded like mine.
Adrian was already moving before I finished speaking.
The guards followed immediately.
But I grabbed his arm.
"Wait."
He turned.
His eyes were cold.
Dangerous.
"Elena."
"I know that room."
The anger in his face paused.
"What?"
"I know the private office."
He stared at me.
"I cleaned it every morning."
That was the truth.
The truth I had never told anyone.
Because I wasn't just a maid.
I had spent months learning every corner of Adrian Voss's mansion.
Every hallway.
Every camera.
Every hidden entrance.
Every place someone could disappear.
Adrian looked toward the screen.
The feed was frozen.
Lily was still standing there.
Still waiting.
Still alone.
"Take me there."
His voice wasn't a request.
It was an order.
And for the first time, I didn't argue.
Because this wasn't about us anymore.
It was about her.
The hallway felt longer than ever.
The mansion that had once felt enormous now felt like a maze.
Every painting.
Every door.
Every shadow.
Felt like it was hiding something.
Adrian walked beside me.
Not ahead.
Not behind.
Beside.
I noticed.
And somehow, that scared me more.
Because Adrian Voss was not used to standing beside anyone.
When we reached the private office, the door was closed.
The guards raised their weapons.
Adrian lifted his hand.
"Nobody enters until I say."
I looked at him.
"Why?"
His eyes stayed on the door.
"Because whoever took Lily wants me angry."
A pause.
"And angry people make mistakes."
I didn't expect that answer.
The old Adrian would have destroyed the door.
The old Adrian would have sent everyone inside.
But this Adrian was thinking.
For Lily.
He reached for the handle.
Then stopped.
His eyes moved toward me.
"Did she ever ask about me?"
The question caught me off guard.
I looked down.
"No."
He nodded slowly.
Like he had expected that.
Then I added:
"She asks about everyone."
He looked at me.
"Everyone?"
I smiled sadly.
"She asks why the moon follows us."
A small smile almost appeared on his face.
Almost.
"She asks why birds don't get tired flying."
I looked at him.
"And she asks why some people look lonely even when they have everything."
Adrian went silent.
Because he knew.
That last question was about him.
Before he could respond, a sound came from inside.
A small voice.
"Mama?"
My heart stopped.
"Lily."
I reached for the door.
Adrian grabbed my hand.
"Wait."
I looked at him.
His face was tense.
"There is something wrong."
He was right.
Because Lily's voice wasn't scared.
It was too calm.
Like someone had told her exactly what to say.
Adrian slowly opened the door.
The office was dark.
The only light came from the computer screen.
Lily was sitting in Adrian's chair.
Her rabbit backpack was beside her.
And standing behind her was a woman.
Not a stranger.
Not an enemy.
Someone I knew.
Someone I trusted.
Margaret.
But something was different.
She wasn't the kind old woman who brought Lily cookies.
She wasn't the woman who held my hand when I cried.
She looked exhausted.
Like she had been carrying a secret too heavy for too long.
Adrian stepped forward.
"What did you do?"
Margaret didn't move.
"I saved her."
The words shocked me.
"What?"
Margaret looked at me.
"I saved Lily."
I shook my head.
"You took her."
"No."
Her voice cracked.
"I protected her."
Adrian's expression hardened.
"From who?"
Margaret looked at him.
"From the person who has been trying to destroy your family for years."
The room went silent.
Adrian stepped closer.
"Name."
Margaret looked at Lily.
Then back at us.
"I can't."
Adrian's patience disappeared.
"People who can't answer questions usually have something to hide."
Margaret nodded.
"You're right."
A sad smile appeared.
"I do."
She reached into her pocket.
The guards immediately aimed their weapons.
But Margaret pulled out something small.
A flash drive.
"I hid this because I knew if they found it, Lily would never be safe."
Adrian took it.
"What is it?"
"The truth."
He looked at the drive.
"About what?"
Margaret looked at me.
"About Elena."
My stomach tightened.
Again.
Everything came back to me.
My name.
My father.
My past.
My daughter.
Adrian connected the drive to the computer.
A video appeared.
A younger version of me filled the screen.
I froze.
Because I recognized the place.
The hospital.
The day Lily was born.
I had never shown anyone that footage.
I didn't even know it existed.
The video began.
I was sitting beside a hospital bed.
Holding newborn Lily.
Crying.
Then someone entered the room.
A man.
I couldn't see his face clearly.
But Adrian could.
Because he immediately recognized the voice.
His face changed.
"No."
I looked at him.
"Who is it?"
He didn't answer.
The man on the recording spoke.
"If Adrian Voss finds out about the child, she becomes a target."
My blood turned cold.
The recording continued.
"I'll handle Elena."
A pause.
"And I'll make sure Adrian never knows."
Adrian stepped back.
Because the voice belonged to someone close.
Someone who had been beside him for years.
The video ended.
Nobody spoke.
Then Adrian slowly looked at Margaret.
"You knew."
Margaret nodded.
"I knew enough."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Her eyes filled with tears.
"Because I was afraid."
"Of me?"
She shook her head.
"No."
A pause.
"Of him."
Adrian's face changed.
"Who?"
Margaret looked toward the hallway.
Like she knew something was coming.
"Adrian..."
The mansion suddenly lost power.
The screens went black.
The doors locked automatically.
The security system activated.
A voice came through the speakers.
Calm.
Familiar.
"Adrian."
Everyone froze.
Because the voice wasn't a stranger.
It was someone Adrian trusted.
Someone who had been standing beside him for years.
The voice continued.
"You finally found the truth."
Adrian stepped toward the speaker.
His face became empty.
Cold.
"Show yourself."
A quiet laugh echoed through the mansion.
Then every security screen turned on at once.
One by one.
Showing the same person.
Standing in the center of the mansion.
May you like
Holding a gun.
And when the camera zoomed in, Adrian whispered the name he never thought he would say.
