Chương 7
Someone was coming.
Rachel stepped aside.
"We do not have much time."
Daniel looked at Ethan.
The boy was trembling.
But he was standing.
Just like Emily.
Daniel placed a hand on his shoulder.
"We are going to find your mother."
Ethan looked up.
"Promise?"
Daniel held his gaze.
This time, he would not make the same mistake.
"I promise."
The footsteps grew closer.
Claire moved toward the hidden entrance.
Victor followed.
Rachel waited behind them.
Daniel looked back one final time at the dark hallway.
Ten years of lies had led them here.
And now the truth was waiting beneath the building where everything began.
The hidden entrance opened into a narrow underground passage that none of them had known existed.
The walls were made of reinforced concrete, with old security lights flickering above them.
The air was colder beneath the building, carrying the smell of dust, metal, and years of forgotten secrets.
Daniel walked at the front with the badge holder in his hand.
Ethan stayed close beside him.
Claire followed behind them, constantly checking their surroundings.
Victor and Rachel walked several steps apart from each other, both watching the shadows.
Nobody trusted anyone completely.
But everyone understood they needed each other.
The passage continued deeper beneath the building than Daniel expected.
"This was here the entire time?" Claire asked.
Daniel looked around.
"I designed the upper floors."
He ran his fingers along the concrete wall.
"I never knew what was underneath."
Rachel answered quietly.
"Because your father built this section after you left the family company."
Daniel stopped.
"My father built it?"
Rachel nodded.
"After he realized you would never become what he wanted."
The words stayed with Daniel.
He remembered being young and sitting across from Richard Mercer at a massive dining table.
Every conversation had been about achievement.
Every mistake had been treated like weakness.
His father never asked what he wanted.
Only what he could become.
"He was always hiding something," Daniel said.
Rachel looked back at him.
"Yes."
Ethan listened carefully.
"Was he a bad person?"
The question surprised everyone.
Daniel looked down at the badge holder.
For years, he had tried to answer that question.
He had loved his father.
He had hated his father.
He had wanted his approval and feared his disappointment.
Finally, he answered honestly.
"He was someone who made terrible choices."
Ethan nodded slowly.
"That sounds like something my mother would say."
Daniel looked at him.
"What do you mean?"
"She said people can do bad things without being only bad."
The words reminded Daniel of Emily.
She had always believed there was a person beneath every mistake.
Even when she was angry.
Even when she was hurt.
A sound echoed from behind them.
Everyone stopped.
Footsteps.
Closer this time.
Claire raised her hand.
"Someone is following us."
Rachel looked toward the darkness behind them.
"They found the entrance."
Victor's expression changed.
"Then we move faster."
They continued through the corridor until they reached a large steel door.
There was no handle.
Only a small black scanner built into the wall.
Daniel held up the badge holder.
Nothing happened.
He pressed it closer.
Still nothing.
"Maybe it is damaged," Claire said.
Rachel shook her head.
"No."
She looked at Daniel.
"It recognizes the person holding it."
Daniel frowned.
"What does that mean?"
"The system was designed by your father."
She paused.
"It only opens for someone connected to him."
Daniel stared at the scanner.
The badge holder suddenly felt heavier.
He placed his hand against it again.
A small light appeared.
The steel door unlocked with a deep mechanical sound.
Everyone became silent.
The door slowly opened.
Inside was a large underground archive.
Rows of cabinets filled the room.
Computer servers hummed along the walls.
Thousands of files were stored in perfect order.
Ethan looked around.
"All of this was hidden here?"
Rachel nodded.
"Everything your father collected."
Daniel stepped inside.
He saw names.
Companies.
Politicians.
Executives.
People who had controlled entire industries.
All reduced to files and information.
Claire walked toward a monitor.
"This is not just blackmail."
Daniel looked at her.
"What is it?"
She opened a file.
Her face changed.
"This is surveillance."
Rachel nodded.
"Your father watched everyone."
Victor looked uncomfortable.
"Not just watched."
Daniel turned.
"What else?"
Victor looked at the files.
"He manipulated outcomes."
Daniel felt anger rising.
"He destroyed people."
"Yes."
"And you helped him."
Victor accepted the accusation.
"Yes."
Ethan looked at Victor.
"Why?"
Victor looked at the boy.
"Because I thought I was protecting my own family."
The answer was quiet.
"But then I saw what he was becoming."
Daniel walked deeper into the archive.
He saw a section marked with a single name.
CARTER, EMILY.
His breathing stopped.
Ethan noticed.
"That is my mom."
Daniel reached for the file.
His hand hesitated before touching it.
For ten years, he had imagined finding answers.
He never imagined being afraid of them.
He opened the folder.
Inside were photographs.
Reports.
Medical records.
Messages.
And one final document.
Daniel read the first line.
Subject status: ALIVE.
Ethan gasped.
"She is alive."
Daniel closed his eyes.
For a moment, he could not speak.
Claire looked over his shoulder.
"Where is she?"
Daniel turned the page.
The location information had been removed.
Only one note remained.
TRANSFERRED TO MERCER FACILITY.
Daniel looked up.
"My father's facility."
Rachel nodded.
"He kept her there."
Ethan stepped back.
"No."
His voice shook.
"No, he wouldn't."
Daniel looked at him.
"I know this is hard."
"My grandfather?"
The word sounded strange coming from him.
Daniel did not answer.
Because the answer was obvious.
The man Ethan had never met had been the reason his mother disappeared.
Claire looked at another document.
"Daniel."
Her voice changed.
He moved toward her.
She pointed at the screen.
A list of names appeared.
Near the bottom was Daniel's own name.
His expression changed.
"What is this?"
Rachel moved closer.
A silence fell over the group.
May you like
Daniel read the information.
Every event.
