Chapter 12 - The Man Who Chose Power Over Love
Grant Mercer disappeared before sunrise.
No cameras.
No alarms.
No witnesses.
Just gone.
And somehow, that scared me more than if he had escaped violently.
Because someone helped him.
Someone powerful.
Someone who understood exactly how to erase evidence.
I returned to the family headquarters with Noah beside me.
For the first time, I wasn’t walking into that building alone.
But I still felt alone.
Because the enemy was no longer outside.
It was inside.
Evelyn had already gathered the security reports.
She looked exhausted.
“Clara.”
“What?”
“The person who released Grant used Falcon authority.”
I froze.
“No.”
“Yes.”
“That’s impossible.”
She handed me the report.
The authorization code was real.
My family’s highest clearance.
Only a few people had access.
My grandmother.
My father before his death.
Me.
And one other person.
Noah.
Everyone looked at him.
He immediately shook his head.
“I didn’t do it.”
I believed him.
But that wasn’t the problem.
Someone had stolen his access.
Or copied it.
Then my phone rang.
Grant.
I answered.
“What do you want?”
His voice was different.
Broken.
“Clara.”
I said nothing.
“I need your help.”
I almost laughed.
“My help?”
“Yes.”
“You tried to take Ellie from me.”
“I know.”
“You lied to me.”
“I know.”
“You destroyed our family.”
Silence.
Then:
“I know.”
The honesty surprised me.
“What happened, Grant?”
A long pause.
“Charles lied to me.”
I frowned.
“You chose him.”
“Yes.”
His voice cracked.
“I did.”
A pause.
“But I found out what he planned to do with Ellie.”
My grip tightened.
“What?”
“He never wanted custody.”
A chill moved through me.
“Then what?”
Grant whispered:
“He wanted her removed.”
The room went silent.
“What does that mean?”
“He believes Ellie is the last living connection to Bluebird.”
I looked at Noah.
Then Evelyn.
Grant continued:
“He thinks if Ellie disappears, Bluebird dies with her.”
My blood ran cold.
“He would hurt a child?”
Grant’s silence answered.
Then:
“He already tried.”
The world stopped.
I stood.
“Where is he?”
“I don’t know.”
“Then why call me?”
Grant hesitated.
“Because I know where Charles is going.”
“Where?”
His answer came quietly.
“To your father’s grave.”
I froze.
“Why?”
“Because Charles believes your father hid the final Bluebird key there.”
I looked outside.
Dark clouds covered the sky.
The past was coming back.
My father.
My brother.
My daughter.
My husband.
Everything connected.
I grabbed my coat.
Noah stood.
“Where are we going?”
I looked at him.
“To the place where this started.”
The cemetery.
The grave of the man who built Bluebird.
The man who knew everyone would betray him.
The man who left me one final instruction.
And as we drove away, I received one last message.
From an unknown number.
A photograph.
Charles standing beside my father’s grave.
Holding a shovel.
The caption beneath it said:
HE’S LOOKING FOR WHAT YOUR FATHER BURIED.
I stared at the image.
Then I realized something.
Charles was not searching for Bluebird.
May you like
He was searching for something even more dangerous.
The truth my father buried with his own hands.
