Evelyn forced Noah’s head toward a dog bowl in front of the whole family.

“Sent away?” My blood turned to ice. “Where?”

Marcus shook his head. “She did not tell me. She said it was better if I did not know. That way I could not betray her. But she gave me a date. Three days from now. That is when something was supposed to happen. Something that would make it impossible for Noah to ever return.”

“Three days,” Daniel muttered, checking his watch. “That is when the preliminary hearing is scheduled. When she will appear before a judge and try to claim she is being held illegally.”

“She will use that day,” I said. “When everyone is distracted. When security is thin. She will make her move.”

Marcus stood up. “I will stay at the mansion. I will guard him with my life. No one gets in. No one gets out. Not without my permission.”

We returned to the house together. Marcus took up his post at the front door. Collins left with the new evidence—Marcus’s diary, the receipts, the notes—and promised to prepare everything for the hearing.

That evening, I sat beside Noah’s bed while he slept. I thought of everything we had uncovered. Evelyn’s crimes spanned decades. She had poisoned, lied, stolen, and manipulated. And yet… she had also raised two sons. She had loved them in her own twisted way. She had believed, with absolute certainty, that everything she did was for their good.

That was the most terrifying thing of all: she was not insane. She was calculating. Ruthless. And completely convinced she was right.

Daniel found me in the hallway later. He looked tired but resolute.

“Marcus is patrolling the grounds,” he said quietly. “He has changed all the passcodes. He checked every lock. He means it, Emily. He is on our side.”

“I know,” I said. “Arthur saw something in him. Something worth saving.”

“Arthur saw the best in people,” Daniel said. “Even when they could not see it themselves.” He paused. “I spoke to Collins. He says with Marcus’s testimony and the new evidence… Evelyn will likely be denied bail. She will remain in jail until trial.”

“And if she is released?”

“Then we will be ready,” Daniel said. “We have Clara. We have Marcus. We have Hale’s wife’s testimony. We have the recordings and the lab results from Arthur. She cannot escape this time.”

But late that night, when the house was quiet, my phone buzzed.

A text message. From an unknown number.

YOU THINK YOU HAVE WON. BUT I TAUGHT MY SONS WELL. AND ONE OF THEM IS STILL MINE.

I froze. Beside me, Daniel stirred.

“Emily?” he murmured sleepily.

I looked at the message. Then at Daniel. Then at the door.

One of them is still mine.

Daniel? Or Marcus?

My heart hammered. I looked at the message again. I taught my sons well. And one of them is still mine.

Evelyn had two sons. Daniel and Marcus.

I looked at Daniel—my husband, who had finally stood up. Who had fought beside me. Who had chosen his son over his mother.

And Marcus—who had given us evidence. Who had sworn to protect Noah. Who had risked everything to do what was right.

Which one was she claiming? Which one was she threatening?

I did not sleep that night. I lay awake, watching the door, watching the window, clutching the phone to my chest.

At dawn, Marcus knocked softly on the bedroom door. He looked pale and shaken.

“Emily,” he said quietly. “Something happened last night. Someone disabled the security cameras at the back of the house. And this was found taped to the kitchen door.”

He held out a photograph.

I took it. My hands turned cold.

It was a picture of Noah. Taken while he slept. Taken from inside our locked bedroom.