“Who are they?” she gasped.
“They work for him!” the boy cried.
“For who?”
“My father.”
Emma froze.
The words hit harder than she expected.
The boy’s father?
Sophia had never mentioned a husband.
Never mentioned a child.
Never mentioned anything.
They ducked into a luxury hotel lobby.
The men ran past outside without noticing them.
Emma knelt beside the boy.
“Tell me everything.”
The child took a deep breath.
“My name is Noah.”
Emma nodded.
“Okay, Noah. Where’s your mother?”
Tears formed in his eyes.
“She’s sick.”
Emma’s chest tightened.
“What do you mean?”
“She said if something happened to her, I had to find Aunt Emma.”
Aunt Emma.
Hearing those words nearly broke her.
Noah reached into his backpack and pulled out a sealed envelope.
“She said only you could open this.”
Emma carefully unfolded the letter.
The handwriting was unmistakable.
Sophia’s.
Emma,
If you’re reading this, I’ve run out of time.
The man I trusted destroyed our lives.
Noah is in danger because of what he knows.
Please protect him.
And forgive me for disappearing.
I never stopped loving you.
Emma wiped tears from her face.
At the bottom of the letter was an address.
A private hospital across town.
Without hesitation, Emma grabbed Noah’s hand.
They rushed there immediately.
Minutes later, they reached Sophia’s room.
Emma pushed open the door.
A woman slowly turned her head.
Older.
Weaker.
But still her sister.
Sophia’s eyes widened.
“Emma…”
Both sisters burst into tears.
After eleven years, they finally embraced.
But before either could speak—
The hospital room door suddenly opened.
A tall man in an expensive suit stepped inside.
His cold smile sent chills through the room.
Noah immediately hid behind Emma.
“Dad…” he whispered fearfully.
The man looked directly at Emma.
Then at Sophia.
And smiled.
“I finally found all three of you.”
