Chapter 6 - Blackout

Sophie screamed. Adrian reached for her in the darkness and found only an empty couch.

“Sophie?”

A door slammed somewhere beyond the library. Rosa shouted the girl's name. Adrian fumbled for his phone, switched on its flashlight, and saw Marcus gone too.

He ran down the hall, following the slap of small shoes against marble. At the staircase, he caught sight of Sophie struggling in the arms of the gray-suited stranger.

“Put her down!”

The man bolted toward the garage. Adrian jumped the last four steps, tackled him, and wrapped both arms around Sophie as they hit the floor. The stranger drove an elbow into Adrian's ribs and scrambled away.

Sophie clung to his neck. “Daddy, he said Mommy would disappear forever if I talked.”

Outside, tires shrieked. Marcus's car was gone.

Rosa arrived breathless with two security guards. Adrian stared at them. They had stood motionless while a child was carried through their employer's home.

“Both of you are fired,” he said. “If you try to leave, I'll tell the police exactly what I saw.”

In the blackout, the mansion became a maze of familiar rooms that suddenly felt hostile. Emergency lights should have switched on within seconds. They didn't. Adrian knew then that someone had planned for darkness. He heard a glass shatter, then the quick thud of footsteps heading toward the staircase. He followed without thinking about the polished steps beneath his shoes.

At the landing, a figure in a dark coat was carrying Sophie. Her small fist beat against his shoulder. 'Put me down!' she screamed. Adrian hit the man hard enough to send them both into the wall. Sophie slid free and crawled toward the banister. Adrian caught her with one arm while the stranger struck him across the cheek. He tasted blood. The man fled into the service stairwell.

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Outside, the driveway filled with confused guests. Marcus was nowhere in sight. A security guard claimed the camera system had failed, but another guard quietly shook his head. Adrian caught the exchange. 'Who told you not to move?' he asked. The younger guard stared at his boots. 'Mr. Marcus said it was a drill. He said nobody was to interfere unless you left the property.' Adrian stared at him. His brother hadn't merely anticipated the panic. He'd rehearsed it.

One guard lowered his eyes. The other whispered, “Mr. Vale, check the garage camera before they erase it.”