PART 2 — THE CABINET
Inside the cabinet was a life I had promised myself I would never return to.
A black duffel bag.
I pulled it down and placed it on the kitchen table.
For a moment, I simply stared at it.
Then I opened it.
Inside were things I hadn’t touched in years: a secure communications device, a flashlight, a first-aid kit, gloves, and several old documents from my military career.
I wasn’t going there to hurt anyone.
I was going there to bring my daughter home.
And I intended to make sure the truth came with her.
Twenty minutes later, I pulled into the driveway of Zachary’s mansion.
The house looked exactly as it always did.
Perfect landscaping.
Perfect windows.
Perfect stone walkway.
Perfect illusion.
But there was something different that afternoon.
The front door was slightly open.
I got out of the truck.
“Hannah?”
No answer.
I stepped inside.
The silence was almost unnatural.
Then I heard something upstairs.
A door slammed.
I moved toward the staircase.
“Hannah!”
This time, I heard her.
“Dad!”
I ran upstairs.
She was standing at the end of the hallway.
Her hair was disheveled.
One side of her face was swollen.
There was a small cut above her eyebrow.
When she saw me, she started crying.
I opened my arms.
She ran straight into them.
“I’ve got you,” I whispered.
“I’ve got you.”
Behind her, a bedroom door slowly opened.
Zachary stepped into the hallway.
He was wearing an expensive white shirt with the sleeves rolled up.
There wasn’t a trace of panic on his face.
Instead, he smiled.
“Colonel Montgomery.”
I looked at him.
“Where is my daughter?”
“She had an accident.”
Hannah flinched.
I noticed.
Zachary noticed me noticing.
Then he smiled again.
“She gets emotional sometimes.”
I didn’t answer.
I simply looked at my daughter.
“Did he do this?”
Hannah lowered her eyes.
Zachary stepped forward.
“Christopher, you should calm down.”
That sentence told me everything.
He wasn’t afraid.
He believed he had control.
He believed the mansion, his money, his reputation, and his influence would protect him.
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