Chapter 3 - THE PRICE OF MY SON'S LIFE
For a moment, the room seemed to tilt beneath my feet.
Noah was inside a stranger's car.
My little boy who still slept with his favorite robot.
My little boy who believed I could fix anything.
I tried calling Ruth.
No answer.
Again.
Voicemail.
Rocco reached for my phone.
“Let me see.”
I pulled it back.
“That's my son.”
“I understand.”
“No. You don't.”
My voice cracked.
“I spent two years getting him away from Ethan. I worked double shifts. I skipped meals. I slept on a mattress on the floor so he could have a real bed. And now somebody has him because I overheard something?”
Rocco's face softened.
“Listen carefully. We can help him. But you need to stay calm.”
The office door opened.
Jack entered.
There was no hesitation in his movements, but when he saw my face, something changed.
“What happened?”
Rocco showed him the photograph.
Jack studied it.
Then looked at me.
“How old?”
“Five.”
His jaw tightened.
“Who took him?”
“My ex-husband may be involved.”
Jack handed the phone back.
“Tell me about Ethan.”
I laughed bitterly.
“He likes money more than people. He gambles. He drinks. And when he loses, somebody else pays.”
“Did he hurt you?”
I looked away.
Jack noticed.
Of course he noticed.
But he didn't force an answer.
Instead, he removed his jacket and placed it over the back of the chair beside me.
“Sit down, Lily.”
“I can't sit.”
“Then stand. But listen.”
He turned toward Rocco.
“Find the vehicle. Quietly. Send two trusted men to Ruth Bennett's address. Nobody approaches the boy until we know who's holding him.”
Rocco nodded and left.
Jack faced me.
“The pen they want is upstairs. It contains a verification module. Someone is desperate to recover whatever was recorded inside it.”
“Then give it to them.”
“If we hand it over without understanding what it contains, they may still hurt your son.”
I swallowed.
“What do you want me to do?”
“Tell me everything you remember.”
I closed my eyes.
Marco touching the case.
Victor checking the east corridor.
The lawyer warning about the recording.
Then I remembered something.
“The lawyer said the pen had a tiny silver piece inside.”
Jack went still.
“What kind of piece?”
“Like a mechanical connector. Maybe the size of a fingernail.”
My thoughts raced toward Noah's robot.
The missing silver part he'd been asking about all week.
“Noah found something,” I whispered.
Jack watched me.
“What?”
“Three nights ago, Ethan gave him a broken robot. Noah said there was a strange metal piece inside it.”
Jack took one step closer.
“Where is that robot now?”
My phone rang.
Unknown number.
I answered with shaking hands.
A familiar voice greeted me.
“Hello, Lily.”
Ethan.
Then he laughed.
“You always were good at finding things that don't belong to you.”
Behind him, I heard Noah crying.
May you like
And Ethan whispered the secret that changed everything.
“Your son has been carrying evidence against Jack Moretti for three years.”
