Chapter 4 - The Betrayal at Lake Geneva
Panic, violent and raw, seized Marcus's chest. Beside him, Rosa saw the blood drain from his face.
"Marcus? What is it?" she asked, her voice trembling.
Without a word, Marcus showed her the screen. Rosa gasped, a horrific cry bursting from her throat. "LILY!"
"Vance! GET THE HELICOPTER!" Marcus bellowed, his composure shattering into pure rage. "NOW!"
Within three minutes, Marcus, Rosa, and Vance’s elite tactical team were airborne, the helicopter blades slicing through the stormy sky as they sped back toward Lake Geneva. Every second felt like a painful eternity.
"How did they get through security?" Rosa sobbed, clutching Marcus's arm tightly. "You said the estate was secure!"
"We have a mole," Vance said grimly, checking his tactical tablet. "Two of the perimeter guards stopped updating their GPS locations ten minutes ago. Someone on the inside took Victoria's money."
Marcus put his arm around Rosa, pulling her close to his side. "I won't let them hurt her, Rosa. I swear to you on my life, if anything happens to Lily, I will burn the world to find her."
When the helicopter touched down on the snow-covered lawn of the estate, the scene was chillingly quiet. The front gates were wide open. The perimeter security lights were smashed.
Marcus drew a concealed firearm from his jacket—a weapon he hadn't carried in years—and stepped out into the freezing wind.
They swept through the main house room by room. The living room was overturned; chairs were flipped, glass shattered. In the guest wing, two loyal guards lay unconscious on the floor, bound with heavy zip-ties.
"Lily!" Rosa screamed, running into her daughter's room.
The room was empty. Lily’s favorite stuffed bear lay on the wooden floor, its button eye torn off in a struggle.
"Rosa, wait!" Marcus caught her before she could run blindly into the dark woods outside.
"She's gone! They took my baby!" Rosa fell to her knees, weeping hysterically, clutching the stuffed bear to her chest.
Marcus knelt beside her, his jaw set so hard his teeth threatened to snap. He picked up a piece of paper left on Lily’s small play desk. On it was written a location in red lipstick:
OLD TIMBER MILL - ROUTE 9. ALONE, MARCUS. OR SHE DIES.
"It's Victoria," Marcus said, his eyes burning with an incandescent, terrifying fire. "She took Lily herself."
"I'm coming with you," Vance declared, signaling his men.
"No," Marcus said, stopping Vance with a cold glare. "The note says alone. They have eyes on the road. If you bring a convoy, she will execute Lily before we reach the gates."
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"Marcus, you can't go in there unarmed and alone against armed mercenaries!" Vance argued.
"I'm not going alone," Marcus replied, looking down at Rosa, who was wiping her tears, her eyes turning from despair to lethal maternal rage. "Rosa comes with me. Victoria thinks Rosa is just a helpless maid. That mistake is going to cost Victoria her life."
