Five years after I buri:ed my husband, I visited a colleague and stepped into a bright nursery—only to see Daniel Mercer standing there alive. The man I had mourned was holding a baby bottle, while my mother-in-law fussed over another woman and her newborn like this was a normal family scene. Daniel looked at me, turned white, and dropped the bottle onto the floor. That was when I understood the coffin had been empty. Before nightfall, the lie that protected his entire family would destroy them all.

I froze as the tall man in a tailored suit stepped into the nursery.

He held a suppressed pistol aimed directly at my chest.

Celeste did not look surprised, but Sophie let out a muffled whimper, pulling the baby closer.

Daniel stepped between me and the gun.

"Marcus, wait."

"She was not supposed to be here."

Marcus tilted his head, his cold eyes locking onto mine.

"But she is here, Daniel."

"And we cannot have loose ends."

My mind raced back to my days investigating corporate fraud.

I recognized the man holding the weapon.

Marcus Vance was a notorious fixer for a cartel that operated through shell corporations.

Daniel had not faked his death to escape debt.

He had faked it to escape the cartel.

"If you shoot me, the file I sent to my attorney goes to the FBI," I lied smoothly.

"I am an auditor at Voss Financial."

"My disappearance will trigger a federal probe by morning."

Marcus lowered the gun slightly, amused.

"You always were the smart one in the marriage, Elena."

He looked at Celeste.

"Get her out of here, or I will handle it my way."

Celeste grabbed my arm with surprising strength.

She shoved me toward the hallway.

I did not fight her, knowing my chances were better outside.

"Do not ever come back," Celeste hissed as we reached the front door.

"You do not understand what is at stake."

I pulled my arm free.

"I understand that you stole my life to protect his."

I walked to my car, my hands shaking only after I locked the doors.

I pulled out my phone to dial for help, but the screen was completely black.

It was dead.

I plugged it into the car charger, waiting for the power logo to appear.

Instead, a string of green code flashed across the screen.

“Which daughter is yours?” should have been a harmless question

The first wineglass shattered at 8:07 p.m

The moment the mafia boss’s wife called me “an illiterate servant,”

A single text message appeared from an unknown number.

"Do not call the police, or the baby dies."

Chapter 2 - The Burner Phone