A private jet was waiting to take me to Chicago when my seven-year-old daughter grabbed my sleeve and whispered something that made me cancel the entire trip without telling a soul. “Dad, don’t go… Grandma takes me to a secret place when you’re gone, and she says I’m never allowed to tell you.” By that afternoon, I was following them myself—and what I saw made every instinct in me turn cold.

The Tarmac I threw my phone onto the passenger seat and pushed the Range Rover's engine to its absolute limit. Sarah sat quietly beside me, her hands clasped together in silent, desperate prayer. The tires squealed as I took sharp turns on the narrow mountain roads leading to the private airfield. We crashed through the rusted security gates, the metal chains snapping against my windshield. I slammed on the brakes as we slid onto the wet concrete of the runway. The deafening roar of jet engines echoed through the valley, vibrating in my chest. Through the driving rain, I saw a sleek black private jet pivoting toward the takeoff lane. I jumped out of the car, sprinting toward the aircraft with zero regard for my own safety. Suddenly, Sarah screamed my name, pointing toward a crumpled figure lying on the tarmac. It was Evelyn. She was clutching her stomach, dark crimson blood pooling on the wet concrete beneath her. I knelt beside my mother-in-law, feeling no pity, only a desperate need for answers. Evelyn coughed violently, gripping my jacket with weak, trembling fingers. She gasped that Michael had double-crossed her. He had taken Lily and shot her the moment they stepped out of the SUV. I demanded to know where the plane was taking my daughter. Evelyn choked on her own blood, whispering that the syndicate's headquarters was a fortress hidden in plain sight. She begged Sarah for forgiveness, but Sarah just stared at her mother with cold, empty eyes. I stood up and watched helplessly as the black jet accelerated down the runway. It lifted into the stormy sky, taking my entire world away with it. As the plane banked sharply to the east, lightning illuminated the customized logo painted on its tail fin. My breath caught in my throat, and my knees nearly buckled. The logo belonged to Apex Medical Corporation. It was the exact same pharmaceutical company my own firm had acquired for two billion dollars just last month. My own corporate empire was financing the syndicate that had just stolen my daughter.