PART 3 – The Woman Who Kept a Promise for Six Years
The rain soaked my suit within seconds.
I didn't care.
The elderly woman sitting beneath the cracked bus shelter struggled to stand as I approached. Her thin coat was patched in several places, and her trembling hands clutched an old canvas bag as though it contained everything she owned.
"Lily..." she whispered.
"I'm sorry."
"I couldn't hide her anymore."
I stared into her tired eyes.
"You know my daughter?"
Tears rolled down her weathered face.
"I've known her since the night she disappeared."
Behind us, restaurant guests crowded beneath the entrance canopy, watching every moment unfold.
Victoria had vanished.
So had my driver.
Something wasn't right.
"My name is Margaret Hayes," the old woman said quietly.
"I worked at Hartwell Manor."
The words hit me like lightning.
Hartwell Manor.
My estate.
The place where my baby vanished six years ago.
"I was your nanny's mother."
My breathing stopped.
Emma.
My nanny.
The woman police believed had kidnapped Sarah before disappearing forever.
"No," I whispered.
"Emma betrayed me."
Margaret shook her head violently.
"No."
"Emma died protecting your daughter."
The world seemed to disappear around me.
"What?"
Margaret slowly opened her canvas bag.
Inside were dozens of faded letters tied together with blue ribbon.
Every envelope carried my name.
Amelia Hartwell.
"I tried sending these."
"They always came back."
With trembling fingers, I opened the first letter.
It was dated six years earlier.
Mrs. Hartwell,
If you're reading this, then I failed. They took Sarah because Emma refused to hand over certain company files. They wanted everyone to believe Emma kidnapped your baby. She ran only to save her. If anything happens to us, please never stop looking for your daughter.
I couldn't breathe.
Emma...
Had never betrayed me.
She had sacrificed everything.
"Who are 'they'?" I asked.
Margaret looked toward the restaurant.
Her expression changed from grief...
...to fear.
"The people closest to you."
At that exact moment...
Three black SUVs pulled into the parking lot.
Men in dark suits stepped out.
Not police.
Private security.
Except...
They weren't mine.
Margaret grabbed my wrist.
"They found us."
Lily instinctively ran into my arms.
One of the men spoke into an earpiece.
"There she is."
Before anyone could react...
A black sedan screeched to a stop beside the sidewalk.
The rear door flew open.
Someone reached toward Lily.
May you like
"Take the child!"
To Be Continued in Part 4...
