Chapter 9 - THE DAY THE LIGHT WENT OUT
The world stopped turning.
I slammed on the brakes. The car skidded to a halt on the gravel driveway.
“WHAT?” I screamed into the phone. “Martin—what did you say?”
“They took him,” Martin gasped. “I stepped away for one minute—just to get water—and when I came back… the window was broken. He was gone. There was a note.”
“READ IT TO ME!”
“*Tell Adrian he has seven days to decide. Or he will never see the boy again.*”
Silas.
I gripped the phone until my hand ached.
“Did you call the police?”
“I called everyone. I’m searching the neighborhood. Adrian… I’m so sorry. I failed you.”
“Not your fault,” I bit out. “Get every man you can trust. Search every road. Every house. Every inch of ground. I’m coming back.”
I hung up and slammed my foot down on the gas. The car rocketed forward, tires screaming. Every second felt like an hour. Every turn felt like it took forever. All I could see was Caleb’s face. All I could hear was his voice. Promise, Daddy?
*I promise.*
And I had failed him.
I pulled into my driveway twenty minutes later. Police cars were already there. Lights flashing. Neighbors standing in the yard, whispering. Martin was pacing on the porch, his face pale and stricken.
I jumped out of the car and ran to him.
“Where?” I grabbed his shoulders. “Where did they take him?”
“We don’t know. The note said nothing else. No address. No demand. Just that.”
I walked into the house. To Caleb’s room. The window was shattered. Glass scattered across the floor. His favorite dinosaur toy lay face down on the rug.
I picked it up. My hands were shaking so hard I could barely hold it.
Silas had him.
I pulled out my phone and dialed Silas’s number. He answered on the first ring.
“You’re fast,” he said. Calm. Completely calm.
“Where is he?” I roared. “What have you done with him?”
“He is safe. For now.”
“Bring him back! Or I swear to you—”
“Or what?” Silas interrupted. “You will do exactly as I say. You will sign the papers. You will hand over custody. And then… perhaps… I will let you see him. Once a year. Maybe.”
“He is six years old!” I screamed. “He needs me! He’s afraid! He doesn’t know you!”
“He is a Hale,” Silas said. “And Hales do not fear. They are feared. You will hand him over willingly, or I will keep him. Forever. Choose, Adrian. Seven days.”
The line went dead.
I stood there in the broken room, clutching a plastic dinosaur, and I cried. Not tears of weakness. But tears of rage. Of helplessness. Of a father’s worst nightmare come true.
Seven days.
Seven days to sign away my son. Or lose him forever.
The police investigated. They dusted for prints. They interviewed neighbors. They searched the whole county. But there was nothing. No leads. No witnesses. No trace.
Silas had covered his tracks perfectly.
That night, I sat on Caleb’s bed, staring at the wall, holding his toy. Martin sat beside me.
“He has resources,” Martin said quietly. “Private security. Private planes. Safe houses all over the country. He could have Caleb across the border by now.”
“I know.”
“Adrian… we need to think. What did Elena leave behind? What else did she hide? If she knew this might happen… she must have left something. Something to use against Silas.”
I thought. The locket. The note. The DNA report.
“Everything we have… only proves Silas is right. That Caleb is a Hale. That makes Silas’s case stronger.”
“Exactly,” Martin said. “Which means Elena must have hidden something else. Something that destroys Silas’s claim entirely. Something that protects Caleb.”
I stood up.
“Her things. The boxes in the attic. We went through them quickly… but maybe we missed something.”
We went up to the attic together. Dust. Cobwebs. Cardboard boxes stacked against the wall. Elena’s things. I hadn’t touched them since she died. I couldn’t bear to. But tonight… I tore through them.
Clothes. Books. Letters. Old photographs.
And then, at the very bottom of the last box… wrapped in oilcloth… was a small, silver key.
Taped to it was a note in Elena’s handwriting.
*Safe deposit box, First National Bank. Main Street. Key #417. Read the contents only if Caleb is in danger. I love you both. Forgive me.*
May you like
My hands trembled.
“Martin,” I whispered. “We found it.”
