Chapter 5 - The Lions' Den-5
The Whitaker Estate sat on two hundred acres of private pine forest in the foothills of Mount Evans. It was a sprawling stone manor built in the 1920s, featuring grand marble archways, security gates, and a private helipad. To the outside world, it was the symbol of medical philanthropy. To me, as the armored SUV pulled through the iron gates, it was a high-class prison.
Arthur dragged me out of the vehicle and through the massive double oak doors of the foyer.
The interior was warm, smelling of polished mahogany, beeswax, and expensive lilies. Standing at the top of the grand double staircase, wearing a pristine cream-colored cashmere sweater and holding a crystal glass of sherry, was Evelyn Whitaker.
At seventy years old, Evelyn looked untouchable. Her silver hair was styled impeccably, her diamond rings catching the light of the massive crystal chandelier.
She descended the stairs slowly, her heels clicking rhythmically against the Italian marble.
"Elise," Evelyn said, her voice smooth, sweet, and utterly devoid of humanity. "You always did bring such chaos into my clean house. Look at you... soaked, bleeding, smelling of dirt and weeds. Just like the day my son brought you home from that ridiculous mountain town."
I stood tall, despite the guard holding my arms behind my back, wiping the blood from my lip with my shoulder.
"Where is my son, Evelyn?" I demanded, my voice echoing off the high marble walls.
Evelyn took a slow sip of her sherry, her blue eyes icy. "Your son? My dear girl, you gave up your rights to that child five years ago. You signed the papers. You accepted the cash settlement—"
"I never touched a single cent of your blood money!" I spat. "The bank account you created was left completely untouched! I signed those papers because you lied to me! You told me he had a rare blood disorder that only your hospital network could treat!"
Evelyn chuckled softly, a light, musical sound that made my skin crawl. "And you believed me. Because you were young, uneducated, and desperate. You were so easy to manipulate, Elise. Just like Grant."
"Grant knows," I said, stepping forward as much as the guard's grip allowed. "Grant knows about the fake video feeds. He knows about the Aspen facility lie. He knows you've been starving and neglecting his son to steal the fifty-million-dollar trust!"
Evelyn’s smile faltered for a fraction of a second. She turned her cold gaze toward Arthur.
"Where is Grant?" she asked quietly.
"He wasn't at the clinic, Mrs. Whitaker," Arthur replied nervously, sweating profusely. "He took the boy through some underground tunnel before we could breach the kitchen. We have teams searching the woods near the creek."
SMACK!
Evelyn threw her glass of sherry directly into Arthur’s face, the crystal shattering loudly against his cheek.
"YOU IDIOTS!" Evelyn roared, her pristine composure shattering into pure, unadulterated venom. "He has the boy! If Grant reaches the press or the corporate board before his sixth birthday, the entire restructuring of the Whitaker Health Group fails! I will lose controlling interest!"
"He won't reach the press, Mrs. Whitaker," Arthur stammered, wiping sherry and blood from his eyes. "We have blocked all cellular towers within a ten-mile radius."
"Find him!" Evelyn commanded, her voice shrill. "Bring him back here! And if the boy... if the boy doesn't survive the night in the cold woods... then we file the tragedy as an accidental death due to Elise's kidnapping!"
I lunged forward with a primal scream, breaking free from the guard's grip for a second, my hands reaching for Evelyn's neck. "YOU MONSTER! HE IS YOUR OWN BLOOD!"
The second guard slammed his heavy fist into my stomach.
The air rushed out of my lungs, and I collapsed onto the cold marble floor, gasping for breath, my vision going black at the edges.
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"Lock her in the sub-level medical archive," Evelyn ordered coldly, stepping over my prone body as if I were a piece of trash. "When Grant surrenders to save his mother's reputation, we will deal with them both."
As I was dragged down the dark stone stairs into the basement levels of the estate, I squeezed my eyes shut, praying into the dark: Grant... please... don't come for me. Save our son.
