Chapter 2 - The Shadow Inside the Mansion
The guard’s words stayed in the air.
“We found the same person in the footage from inside this mansion three weeks ago…”
For a few seconds, nobody moved.
Not even Dominic.
I watched his face carefully.
The same face that terrified businessmen.
The same face that made people lower their voices when they said his name.
But now I saw something else.
Anger.
Not the loud kind.
Not the kind that made someone break things or scream.
The dangerous kind.
The kind that became completely silent.
“Show me.”
The guard immediately handed him the phone.
Dominic stared at the screen.
I couldn’t see everything from where I stood, but I saw enough.
A blurry figure.
Dark clothing.
A hood pulled low.
Standing near the hallway outside the staff entrance.
Watching.
Waiting.
My fingers wrapped around Lily’s shoulders.
I suddenly felt like every wall in that mansion was closing in on us.
“Mr. Moretti,” I whispered, “what does this mean?”
He didn’t answer immediately.
His eyes remained on the screen.
“It means someone has been inside my home.”
The way he said it made my heart race.
Because I understood what he wasn’t saying.
Someone had been inside his home.
Someone had been close to me.
Someone had been close to Lily.
Dominic looked at the guard.
“Lock down the property.”
The guard nodded.
“Already done.”
“Find every employee who had access to this floor.”
The guard hesitated.
“Sir…”
Dominic looked up.
The guard immediately lowered his eyes.
“What?”
“There’s another problem.”
I felt my stomach tighten.
“What problem?”
The guard looked at me.
Then at Lily.
Then back at Dominic.
“The person in the footage wasn’t just near the staff entrance.”
Dominic’s expression hardened.
“Where else?”
The guard swallowed.
“The children’s playroom.”
My blood went cold.
Lily’s playroom.
The small room where she kept her toys.
The room where she drew pictures.
The room where she spent time when I worked.
I couldn’t breathe.
I pulled Lily closer.
“No.”
The word escaped before I even realized I had spoken.
Dominic looked at me.
And for the first time since I met him, I saw something close to guilt in his eyes.
Because he understood.
Someone had entered the one place where my daughter felt safe.
He turned toward the staircase.
“Take Elena and Lily to the private wing.”
I shook my head.
“No.”
Everyone looked at me.
I knew I was probably the only person in that mansion who would ever refuse Dominic Moretti.
But I couldn’t stop myself.
“I need to know what happened.”
His eyes narrowed slightly.
“This isn’t a request.”
“And Lily isn’t a possession.”
The room became silent.
I immediately regretted my tone.
Not because I was wrong.
Because I knew exactly who I was speaking to.
But Dominic surprised me.
He didn’t get angry.
He looked at Lily.
Then at me.
“You’re afraid.”
I laughed quietly.
A broken laugh.
“Of course I’m afraid.”
My voice shook.
“I’m a mother.”
Those two words changed something.
Dominic looked away for a moment.
Then he spoke softly.
“Then stay close to me.”
I stared at him.
“What?”
“Until I know who did this, you and your daughter don’t leave my sight.”
I wanted to argue.
I wanted to tell him I didn’t need saving.
But the truth was simple.
I did.
Not because I was weak.
Because someone had been watching my child.
And I had no idea who they were.
The security team moved through the mansion like a storm.
Doors opened.
Cameras were checked.
Employees were questioned.
For the first time, I saw the real world Dominic Moretti lived in.
A world built on secrets.
A world where danger could walk through the front door wearing a friendly face.
I sat in a private sitting room with Lily on my lap.
She was drawing again.
I watched the paper carefully.
“Sweetheart.”
She looked up.
“Yes, Mommy?”
“Why didn’t you tell me about the man before?”
Her little hand stopped moving.
For a moment, she looked scared.
Not confused.
Scared.
That frightened me more.
“Because he told me not to.”
My heart dropped.
“Who told you?”
Lily looked around the room.
Then leaned closer.
“He said if I told you, Mommy would disappear.”
I felt like someone had punched the air out of my lungs.
“Lily…”
“He said bad things happen when people tell secrets.”
I held her tighter.
“Did he talk to you?”
She nodded.
“When?”
“Outside our apartment.”
“When?”
“After you went to work.”
My hands started shaking.
I had left her alone for less than ten minutes each morning while my neighbor watched her before daycare.
Ten minutes.
That was enough.
“Did he touch you?”
My voice almost broke.
Lily immediately shook her head.
“No.”
Then she looked down.
“He gave me candy.”
My blood turned cold.
Dominic entered the room just in time to hear that.
His expression changed instantly.
“What did you say?”
I looked at him.
“He gave her candy.”
The calm disappeared from his face.
Not completely.
But enough.
He walked closer.
“Lily.”
She looked at him.
“Do you remember what he looked like?”
She nodded.
“Can you tell me?”
The little girl thought carefully.
“He had a scar.”
“Where?”
She touched her cheek.
“Here.”
Dominic exchanged a look with one of his men.
A look that told me they knew something.
“What?” I asked.
Neither answered.
“Dominic.”
It was the first time I had called him by his name.
His eyes moved to mine.
“There are people who want to hurt me.”
I frowned.
“Because of your business?”
“Yes.”
“Then why is he following us?”
Silence.
A terrible silence.
Because that was the question nobody wanted to answer.
Dominic looked at the drawing Lily was making.
The black figure.
The same figure.
Then he asked quietly:
“Did your daughter draw him before she met me?”
I nodded.
“Yes.”
He took the paper.
Looked at it.
Then looked at Lily.
“What else did you see?”
Lily pointed at the drawing.
The black figure.
Then she pointed at another small detail.
A tiny red mark near the corner.
I hadn’t noticed it before.
“What is that?” Dominic asked.
Lily whispered:
“That’s his car.”
I froze.
Dominic looked closer.
A child’s drawing.
A red car.
A license plate with random numbers.
Except they weren’t random.
Dominic stood suddenly.
“Get me the camera footage from outside Elena’s apartment.”
His men moved immediately.
I watched him.
“What did you see?”
He didn’t answer.
“Dominic.”
This time his expression softened.
Only slightly.
“The numbers.”
“What about them?”
He looked at the drawing.
Then at me.
“Your daughter remembered the license plate.”
My heart raced.
“But she’s three.”
“I know.”
His voice became quieter.
“That’s why this matters.”
Minutes later, a laptop was placed on the table.
Security footage appeared.
A street.
My old apartment building.
The same red car.
My hands covered my mouth.
Because it was real.
I wasn’t imagining it.
I wasn’t being paranoid.
Someone had been there.
Someone had been watching us.
Dominic leaned closer to the screen.
“Pause.”
The footage froze.
The driver’s side window was visible.
A reflection.
A face.
Not clear.
But enough.
One of Dominic’s guards stepped closer.
Then he whispered:
“Sir…”
Dominic didn’t move.
“What?”
The guard pointed at the screen.
“That man…”
A pause.
A long one.
“He worked for your father.”
The room went silent.
Dominic’s face changed.
I had never seen him look surprised before.
Not once.
But now I did.
Because whatever memory had just returned to him…
It was something he thought was buried.
He slowly reached for his phone.
Then stopped.
“What is it?” I asked.
He looked at me.
And for the first time, I saw fear in Dominic Moretti’s eyes.
Not for himself.
For us.
Then his phone rang.
The screen showed a name.
A name that made his entire body go still.
“Father…” he whispered.
Dominic answered.
Nobody spoke for several seconds.
Then his expression changed.
The color left his face.
He slowly turned toward me.
And said one sentence:
“Your daughter wasn’t the only one who saw him.”
I felt my heart stop.
“Who else?”
Dominic lowered the phone.
The call had already ended.
Then his security alarm suddenly started screaming.
From upstairs.
May you like
From Lily’s room.
And Dominic was already running toward the stairs because the door to the playroom had just opened by itself.
