Chapter 56 - THE LIGHTS WENT OUT AT HAWTHORNE VILLA—THEN THE WOMAN IN THE WHEELCHAIR WHISPERED A NAME THAT MADE SOFIA FREEZE
The darkness arrived so completely that Sofia Ramirez could hear the frightened breathing of everyone standing around her.
One moment, the library of Hawthorne Villa had been illuminated by golden chandeliers and the cold blue glow of security monitors. The next, every light vanished, leaving the enormous room submerged in a darkness that seemed almost alive.
Outside, rain battered the windows. Thunder rolled across the estate, shaking the ancient glass in its frames.
"Nobody move," Daniel Hawthorne ordered.
His voice was steady, but Sofia recognized the tension beneath it. She had heard that voice during boardroom confrontations, police investigations, and the terrible night they discovered Isabella alive beneath the villa.
This time, however, Daniel sounded afraid.
Not for himself.
For the people standing beside him.
Sofia reached instinctively toward the place where Margaret Hale had been sitting.
Her fingers touched empty air.
"Margaret?"
No answer.
"Margaret, where are you?"
A faint metallic sound came from somewhere near the fireplace.
Then a woman's voice emerged from the darkness.
"Don't let Elizabeth inside."
Sofia turned sharply.
"Margaret?"
"Please," the elderly woman whispered. "If she enters this house before I explain, someone will die."
Daniel activated the flashlight on his phone.
A narrow beam swept across the library, illuminating shelves of leather-bound books, the marble fireplace, and Charles Hawthorne's enormous portrait.
Margaret's wheelchair stood beside the desk.
Empty.
Sofia felt her stomach tighten.
"Where is she?"
Victoria Ashford grabbed Daniel's arm.
"She was right here."
Marcus, the security director, spoke through his radio.
"All units, report."
Static answered.
He tried again.
Nothing.
"The internal communications are down," he said.
Daniel looked toward the windows.
"Backup generators?"
"They should have activated automatically."
"Then somebody disabled them."
Sofia stared at the abandoned wheelchair.
Margaret had been holding a brass key moments before the blackout.
She had looked frightened, but not surprised.
And then she had disappeared.
"She knew this was going to happen," Sofia whispered.
Daniel turned toward her.
"What?"
"Margaret knew."
A sudden crash echoed from the second floor.
Victoria screamed.
Marcus immediately moved toward the staircase.
"Stay together."
But Sofia was already walking toward the fireplace.
Something about the metallic sound bothered her.
She crouched beside the stone hearth and examined the floor.
There, almost invisible beneath the Persian rug, was a narrow opening.
A concealed panel.
Fresh scratches marked its edges.
"Daniel."
He hurried over.
Sofia pointed.
"There's another passage."
Daniel stared.
"How many secret rooms did my father build?"
"Apparently enough to hide an entire civilization."
Under different circumstances, he might have smiled.
Instead, he helped her pull the panel open.
A staircase descended into darkness.
Cold air rose from below.
And somewhere deep beneath the house, a door slammed.
Sofia straightened.
"Margaret went down there."
Marcus returned from the hallway.
"The front gate has been forced open."
Daniel turned.
"Elizabeth?"
"She's inside the grounds."
Victoria stepped forward.
"That's my sister."
Marcus looked at her.
"Miss Ashford, we don't know whether she's alone."
Victoria's expression hardened.
"Then find out."
A second crash sounded upstairs.
This time, it was followed by a child's cry.
Sofia froze.
"Noah?"
Another cry.
Higher.
More frightened.
"Claire!"
She ran toward the staircase.
Daniel caught her wrist.
"Sofia, wait."
"My children are upstairs."
"I know. I'm coming with you."
They climbed together, their phone flashlights cutting through the darkness.
The hallway outside the children's rooms was empty.
One bedroom door stood open.
Sofia's heart began pounding.
"Noah!"
A small figure emerged from behind the bed.
Noah.
His face was pale.
"Mom?"
Sofia dropped to her knees and embraced him.
"Where's Claire?"
Noah pointed toward the connecting bathroom.
"She's hiding."
Sofia found Claire trembling beneath a towel.
She gathered both children into her arms.
"It's okay. I'm here."
Noah shook his head.
"No, Mom."
Sofia pulled back.
"What?"
His voice became very small.
"The lady came."
Sofia went cold.
"What lady?"
"The old lady."
"Margaret?"
Noah shook his head.
"The other one."
Daniel appeared in the doorway.
Sofia looked at him.
"What other woman?"
Noah began crying.
"She said we had to hide because the first child was coming home."
Sofia stared.
Then Noah reached into his pajama pocket.
He removed a folded piece of paper.
"The lady told me to give you this."
Sofia opened it.
The message was handwritten.
THE FIRST CHILD WAS NEVER ELIZABETH. ASK ISABELLA WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE SOFIA WAS BORN.
Sofia stopped breathing.
Below them, the grandfather clock struck midnight.
And from the darkness at the end of the hallway, Isabella Ramirez spoke.
"Sofia."
Her voice trembled.
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TO BE CONTINUED...
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