Chapter 8: The Child Taken in the Dark
Victor read the message three times.
Four words.
Only four words.
But they destroyed the fragile hope he had just begun to feel.
*Sir. Ethan is gone.*
For a moment, he stopped hearing everything around him.
The abandoned church.
The wind outside.
His mother’s voice.
None of it existed anymore.
There was only one thought.
His son.
“My child.””
The words came out barely above a whisper.
Clara immediately saw his face change.
“What happened?””
Victor turned the phone toward her.
She read the message.
And all the color disappeared from her face.
“No.””
Lily stepped forward.
“Mr. Blackwood?””
Victor was already moving toward the door.
“We’re leaving.””
Clara grabbed his arm.
“Victor.””
He stopped.
His mother looked terrified.
“Don’t go back there blindly.””
He stared at her.
“My son is there.””
“I know.””
Her voice broke.
“But that is exactly what they want.””
Victor froze.
“What?””
Clara looked at the photograph still lying on the table.
“Adrian Cross never attacked people directly.””
She swallowed.
“He used the people they loved.””
Victor’s jaw tightened.
“You’re saying this was planned?””
“I’m saying Ethan was never just a target.””
A pause.
“He was leverage.””
Victor felt a cold anger rise inside him.
Nobody touched his son.
Nobody.
Not Serena.
Not Richard.
Not anyone.
“Where is Adrian Cross?””
Clara looked away.
“I don’t know.””
“You knew him.””
“Yes.””
“How?””
Her silence lasted too long.
Victor’s expression changed.
“Mom.””
Clara closed her eyes.
“I worked with him.””
The confession hit harder than anything else.
Victor stepped back.
“You worked with him?””
“Before I knew what he was.””
“Doing what?””
“Your grandfather’s company had financial problems years ago.””
Victor stared.
“Blackwood Holdings had problems?””
“Yes.””
“And Adrian helped?””
Clara nodded.
“At first, he looked like a savior.””
Her voice became quieter.
“He knew how to fix everything. Investments. Deals. Expansion.””
Victor looked toward the photograph.
“But?””
“But every favor had a price.””
The church became silent.
“He didn’t want money.””
Clara looked at him.
“He wanted control.””
The drive back to the mansion felt endless.
Victor sat in the passenger seat, staring at the road ahead.
Lily drove.
Neither spoke.
Because there were no words that could make this better.
Every minute Ethan was missing was another minute Victor would never forgive himself for.
Finally, Lily broke the silence.
“You can’t blame yourself.””
Victor looked out the window.
“I should have seen it.””
“You saw it.””
“Too late.””
Lily gripped the steering wheel.
“You came home.””
Victor looked at her.
“What?””
“You came home when Ethan needed you.””
A bitter smile crossed his face.
“And then I left.””
“To find the truth.””
“And someone took him.””
Lily didn’t answer.
Because she knew there was no argument strong enough.
Victor looked at his phone.
No new messages.
No calls.
Nothing.
The silence was torture.
Then, suddenly, his phone rang.
Unknown number.
Victor answered instantly.
“Where is my son?””
A familiar voice responded.
Serena.
“Victor.””
His blood ran cold.
“Where is Ethan?””
“I didn’t take him.””
“You expect me to believe that?””
“I know how it looks.””
“How it looks?””
His voice exploded.
“My son disappeared from my home after everything you did.””
A pause.
Then Serena whispered:
“Someone wants you to think it was me.””
Victor went silent.
“What are you talking about?””
“I found something.””
“Where are you?””
“I’m still at the mansion.””
“You should have left.””
“I tried.””
Her voice shook.
“But the security system locked every door.””
Victor’s eyes narrowed.
“What?””
“Victor, listen to me.””
The panic in her voice sounded real.
“The cameras came back online.””
He looked at Lily.
The cameras.
The same cameras Serena had disabled.
“When?””
“Ten minutes after you left.””
Victor felt a chill.
“Who has access?””
Silence.
Then Serena said:
“Someone used your father’s administrator code.””
Richard.
Again.
Victor’s hands tightened.
“Where is Ethan?””
“I don’t know.””
A pause.
“But I found something.””
“What?””
“Come back.””
“No.””
“Victor—”
“If you know something, tell me.””
Her voice lowered.
“There’s a hidden room under the nursery.””
Victor stopped breathing.
“What?””
“I found the entrance.””
“How?””
“I saw Ethan’s toy move.””
Victor frowned.
“What does that mean?””
Serena whispered:
“Someone was inside.””
The call ended.
When Victor returned to the mansion, the entire estate was in chaos.
Employees moved through the halls.
Security teams searched every room.
But the fear was everywhere.
Nobody had answers.
Martha rushed toward him.
“Sir.””
Victor immediately grabbed her shoulders.
“Tell me exactly what happened.””
Her eyes filled with tears.
“I was in Ethan’s room.””
“What time?””
“About twenty minutes after you left.””
“And?””
“The lights went out.””
Victor’s expression hardened.
“Only the nursery?””
“Yes.””
“What happened next?””
“When they came back on…”
Martha struggled to continue.
“He was gone.””
Victor looked toward the nursery.
“Doors?””
“Locked from the inside.””
“Windows?””
“Closed.””
“Security?””
Martha looked down.
“Disabled.””
Again.
Someone inside.
Someone with access.
Victor entered the nursery.
Everything looked normal.
Almost too normal.
Ethan’s toys.
His blankets.
His small shoes near the bed.
Then Victor saw it.
A stuffed bear sitting on the floor.
He picked it up.
“Was this here before?””
Martha shook her head.
“No.””
Victor examined it.
Something felt wrong.
The stitching on the back looked different.
He turned the bear around.
A small device was hidden inside.
A speaker.
And beneath it, a tiny memory card.
Victor removed it.
His hands were shaking.
“Play it.””
Lily looked worried.
“Are you sure?””
“Yes.””
Victor inserted the card into a nearby computer.
A video appeared.
The image was dark.
Security footage.
The nursery.
The timestamp showed tonight.
Victor watched.
At first, nothing happened.
Then the door opened.
And Ethan appeared.
Being carried.
Not crying.
Not hurt.
Just asleep.
The person carrying him wore black clothing.
Their face was hidden.
Victor leaned closer.
Then the person turned slightly.
And Victor saw a familiar movement.
A familiar way of walking.
His stomach dropped.
“No.””
Lily looked at him.
“Who is it?””
Victor didn’t answer.
Because he knew.
The person placed Ethan gently in their arms.
Then looked directly at the camera.
As if they knew Victor would watch this.
The figure removed the hood.
And the screen revealed a face.
A face Victor had seen his entire life.
His voice barely worked.
“Dad.””
Richard Blackwood looked into the camera.
Then the video ended.
Nobody spoke.
The mansion felt frozen.
Martha covered her mouth.
Lily stared at the screen.
Victor stood completely still.
His father.
The man who claimed to protect him.
The man who said he wanted Ethan safe.
Had taken his grandson.
“No.””
The word escaped Victor.
Not because he didn’t believe it.
Because he didn’t want to.
Then the computer made a sound.
A new file appeared.
Created seconds earlier.
The title:
*FOR VICTOR ONLY*
Victor opened it.
A video started.
Richard appeared.
Not angry.
Not threatening.
Just tired.
“Victor.””
His father looked older than he had ever seen him.
“I know what you’re thinking.””
Victor’s fists tightened.
Richard continued.
“I know you believe I took Ethan.””
A pause.
“But I didn’t take him to hurt him.””
Victor stared.
“Then why?””
Richard looked away.
“Because Adrian Cross found us.””
Victor froze.
Richard continued.
“He knows you found the files.””
A long pause.
“He knows Clara contacted you.””
Victor looked toward his mother.
“She was never supposed to come back.””
His father’s face tightened.
“But now that she has…”
The video glitched.
Then Richard said the words that changed everything.
“Victor, if you want Ethan alive, you need to understand one thing.””
The screen went black.
Then one final sentence appeared.
*The enemy you’re searching for has been inside your family longer than you think.*
Victor stared at the message.
Then his phone buzzed.
A new text.
From Richard.
One location.
One time.
May you like
And one warning.
*Come alone. Or you will never see Ethan again.*
