"Sunny has her."
He rushed upstairs to see Zara rapped in Sunny's arms, something inside him cracked.
Ariana stood in the corner. Her head covered in blood.
Roberto crossed the room and dropped to his knees.
"Princess."
Zara immediately reached for him.
"Daddy!"
He pulled her into his arms.
"I've got you."
She cried against his chest.
"Daddy, I was scared."
"I know."
He held her tighter.
"I know."
Ariana stood behind them, tears running down her face.
"Mummy...." Zara said.
"Yes baby" Ariana replied.
Zara raised her hands for a hug.
Ariana knelt down and hugged her.
"I was so scared" Zara said.
"Sorry we came late" Ariana said.
Antonio arrived seconds later.
He looked around the room.
"Where's the intruder?"
"Gone," Sunny replied.
Antonio's jaw tightened.
"Did you see his face?"
"No."
"Anything?"
Sunny thought for a moment.
"He said something."
Antonio looked at her.
"What?"
Sunny's voice dropped.
"He said, 'She's not here.'"
Antonio's expression hardened.
Roberto looked up.
"They knew exactly who they were looking for."
Nobody spoke.
The room became painfully quiet.
Then Antonio's phone rang.
He answered.
"Yeah?"
A voice spoke rapidly on the other end.
Antonio's face changed.
"Send it to me."
He hung up.
Roberto stood.
"What?"
Antonio looked at him.
"We checked the courthouse cameras."
"And?"
Antonio hesitated.
"Someone was watching Zara."
Roberto's stomach dropped.
"Who?"
"We don't know."
Antonio pulled out his phone.
"But we have a photograph."
He turned the screen toward Roberto.
It showed Zara outside the courthouse.
Taken from a distance.
Roberto stared at it.
Then his blood ran cold.
Because the photograph had been taken before the custody hearing even started.
Someone hadn't been reacting to the trial.
They had planned this.
And they had been watching his daughter for much longer than any of them realized.
Roberto stared at the photograph. He couldn't breathe.
Zara was standing outside the courthouse, holding Sofia's hand, completely unaware that someone was watching her from a distance.
Someone had been close enough to capture every detail.
Her face. Her clothes. Even the person standing beside her.
Roberto's hands curled into fists.
"When was this taken?"
Antonio checked the timestamp.
"About forty minutes before the hearing."
Ariana stepped closer.
"Forty minutes?"
Antonio nodded.
"Whoever took it knew where Zara would be."
Roberto looked at the photograph again.
"Then they knew about the hearing."
"Apparently."
"Who knew?"
Antonio didn't answer immediately.
Roberto looked at him.
"Antonio."
"Family. Lawyers. Court officials. Security…"
His eyes narrowed.
"And anyone who was monitoring the case."
Ariana's face went pale.
"Do you think someone from Trisha's side is involved?"
Roberto shook his head.
"I don't know."
"But they came into our home."
His voice hardened.
"They knew exactly where Zara's room was."
The room fell silent.
Sunny crossed her arms.
"That means they had information from inside."
Antonio looked at her.
"That's what I'm thinking."
Roberto glanced toward Zara.
She was still in his arms.
He lowered his voice.
"No one leaves this house."
Ariana frowned.
"What?"
"Until we know who did this."
Antonio nodded.
"I'll increase security."
"No."
Antonio looked at him.
"I'll do it myself."
"Roberto—"
"I said no one."
His voice cracked with anger.
"No more risks."
He looked around the room.
"Not for Zara."
Across town, a black sedan stopped outside an abandoned warehouse.
The passenger door opened.
The man who had entered Zara's bedroom stepped out.
He had a cut on his cheek from his struggle with Sunny.
A woman waited inside the warehouse.
She stood with her arms crossed.
"You failed."
The man lowered his head.
"I almost had her."
"Almost doesn't count."
"They weren't supposed to be there."
The woman's expression hardened.
"Sunny.... Ariana"
"Yes."
"She interfered."
The woman walked toward him.
"Then we remove them from the equation."
The man looked up.
"And the child?"
The woman smiled coldly.
"She's still the key."
"To Roberto?"
"To everything."
She turned toward a large table.
Several photographs were spread across it.
Roberto. Ariana. Zara. Sofia. Antonio. Sunny.
And one photograph that had been taken in another country.
Melissa.
The woman picked it up.
"Once we have the child, Roberto will do anything."
The man looked at Melissa's photograph.
"What about her?"
The woman's smile disappeared.
"She is a problem."
Melissa sat alone in a hotel room on the other side of the world.
She stared at her phone.
Antonio's name was still on her screen.
Their conversation had ended hours ago, but his voice remained in her head.
I miss you. She closed her eyes.
She shouldn't have let him say it.
She shouldn't have said his name.
She shouldn't have allowed herself to feel anything.
Her phone suddenly vibrated.
Melissa opened her eyes.
A message.
UNKNOWN NUMBER:
You should stop digging.
Her heart stopped.
She stared at the screen.
Another message appeared.
Silver Reign isn't your biggest problem.
Melissa slowly sat upright.
Her fingers tightened around the phone.
A third message appeared.
Your employer is in danger.
Her expression changed.
Antonio.
She immediately called him.
The phone rang.
Once. Twice. Three times.
No answer.
Melissa's breathing quickened.
She called again.
Still nothing.
She called Dean, he answered on the first ring.
"Yellow"
"Help me check up om thing back home" Melissa said.
"I am not your employee" Dean said.
"I got a message... I also want you to check it" Melissa said in a serious tune.
"Fine" He said before hanging up.
The recovery room was quiet.
Nancy slept peacefully beneath the soft white sheets, her breathing steady and calm.
Melissa stood beside the window, watching the morning sunlight spill across the hospital floor.
For weeks, everything had revolved around Nancy's surgery.
The procedure had been long and complicated, but it had gone better than anyone had expected.
Nancy was finally recovering.
And for Melissa, that meant she could finally breathe.
She turned toward the sleeping woman.
"You're going to be fine now," she whispered.
But Melissa knew she couldn't leave Nancy without making sure she was properly cared for.
So she made arrangements.
She found Nancy a beautiful house in a quiet neighborhood, far from the noise and chaos of the city.
It was spacious enough for her to recover comfortably, with a large garden and wide windows that filled the rooms with natural light.
Melissa hired a small staff.
Two maids. A professional butler.
A private nurse who would check on Nancy regularly.
She made sure the house was stocked with everything Nancy might need.
And then there was school.
Nancy had spent too long dealing with hospitals and uncertainty.
Melissa wanted her to have something normal.
A future.
She enrolled her in one of the best schools in the area.
When she told Nancy, the girl's eyes widened.
"You did all this for me?"
Melissa smiled.
"You deserve a fresh start."
Nancy looked around the beautiful room.
"I don't know how I'll ever repay you."
"You don't have to. It's all your sister remember?"
Melissa gently squeezed her hand.
"Just get better."
Nancy smiled.
For the first time in a long while, there was genuine hope in her eyes.
That evening, Melissa sat alone in the guest room, packing her suitcase.
She had already made her decision.
Nancy was safe.
Her recovery was going well.
It was time to return home.
Mexico was calling her back.
But before she could close her suitcase, her phone rang.
Dean.
Melissa stared at the screen for a moment before answering.
"Hello?"
"Melissa."
His voice was serious.
She immediately stopped packing.
"What happened?"
"We need to talk."
Dean paused
"About the Gonzalez case."
Melissa's expression changed.
"Zara" She said slowly.
"Yes."
She sat down.
"Tell me everything."
Dean took a breath.
"It's Trisha."
Melissa's eyes narrowed.
"What about her?"
"She filed the anonymous report."
Melissa froze.
"The report submitted to the court?"
"Yes."
Dean continued.
"She fabricated the allegations against Roberto and made it look as though the information came from an anonymous source."
Melissa's fingers tightened around her phone.
"So she planned the custody case."
"Not just planned it."
Dean's voice lowered.
"She bribed Judge Aaron Jones."
Melissa's expression hardened.
"How certain are you?"
"I have evidence."
Silence filled the room.
"That old bastard" Melissa said under her breath.
Melissa stared at the suitcase on the bed.
Everything suddenly made sense.
The suspicious evidence. The attacks.
The pressure surrounding Roberto.
The strange people appearing around Zara.
Trisha wasn't simply fighting for custody.
She was trying to destroy Roberto.
And Zara was the weapon she had chosen.
"Who else is involved?" Melissa asked.
Dean hesitated.
"Several people."
"Names."
"I'll send them."
Her phone buzzed.
A file appeared.
Melissa opened it.
Her eyes moved across the list.
Security officers. Paid witnesses. Private investigators.
People hired to follow Zara.
People paid to intimidate Roberto.
And several names connected directly to attempts against Zara.
Melissa's face became expressionless.
"Dean."
"Yes?"
"Did Trisha order them to hurt Zara?"
"Yes."
Melissa closed her eyes.
For several seconds, she said nothing.
Then she quietly replied,
"I'm going home... I'll see you there."