It was Marcus.

He was supporting a thin, pale woman dressed in a faded grey gown.

Clara.

Her face was gaunt, her eyes hollow, but she was standing on her own feet.

I felt a sharp knot of tension untie in my chest.

Nora gasped beside me, clutching her collar with a trembling hand.

“She is alive,” Nora whispered, her voice cracking.

“Marcus has her,” I said, my voice steady despite the adrenaline surging through me.

“Take Lila and go to the inner study,” I ordered.

Nora looked at me, her eyes filled with a mix of fear and sudden hope.

She didn’t argue this time.

She turned and ran down the dim hallway toward the nursery to protect our daughter.

I turned my attention back to the flashing terminal.

The progress bar on the screen reached one hundred percent.

The system chimed.

*Upload Complete.*

I pressed the red icon labeled *Broadcast.*

The encrypted files, containing seventeen years of Caleb’s secret offshore bank accounts and stolen syndicate funds, flooded the secure network.

The data went directly to the five regional heads who governed our territory.