Chapter 10 - Ashes and Embers
Twenty-four hours later, the Ashford estate was nothing more than a charred skeleton guarded by crime scene tape and state investigators.
Julian sat in a private room at St. Jude's Hospital, watching Lily sleep peacefully in the pediatric ward. Her vital signs were stable, treated for mild smoke inhalation and minor cuts, but the psychological scars would take years to heal. Sofia sat in an armchair nearby, her arm in a sling, quietly sipping tea.
The door opened, and Detective Vance Reynolds of the State Police stepped inside, his expression solemn. He gestured for Julian to step out into the hallway.
Julian gently kissed his daughter's forehead and stepped out into the quiet corridor, shutting the door behind him. ""Did you find her?""
Reynolds shook his head, pulling a small plastic evidence bag from his trench coat. ""No trace of Victoria Ashford. The SUV she fled in was found abandoned at a private airfield twenty miles north. A twin-engine turboprop took off without flight clearance forty minutes after the fire started. Heading south toward the Caribbean.""
Julian clenched his fists, his fingernails digging into his palms. ""And Marcus?""
""Vance is singing like a canary in county lockup,"" Reynolds said, looking down at the evidence bag. Inside was the burnt remnant of a maritime logbook recovered from the sub-cellar. ""He confirmed everything. Your father’s involvement in the sinking of The Siren, Caldwell’s survival, and Victoria’s plan to systematically liquidate your family’s assets. But there's something else, Julian.""
""What?""
""We searched Victoria's private laptop retrieved from her vehicle,"" Reynolds said, his voice lowering to a whisper. ""She wasn't working alone, even beyond Marcus and Caldwell. There is an entire consortium of investors who bought into The Siren fraud twenty-five years ago. Highly placed politicians, judges, foreign dignitaries. Caldwell was going to blackmail them. Victoria... Victoria took those blackmail files with her.""
Julian stared at the detective, the full weight of the nightmare settling onto his shoulders. ""Which means they'll hunt her.""
May you like
""And anyone connected to her,"" Reynolds replied grimly. ""Julian, you and Lily are in extreme danger. As long as those files are out there, people will assume you know where they are. You need to disappear.""
Julian looked through the small glass window of the hospital door at his sleeping daughter. ""I spent my whole life living in a house of lies. I'm not running anymore.""
