Chapter 6 - Secrets of the Safe
Nathan didn't panic. Panic was a luxury for men who didn't have a family to protect.
He stood up, walked over to the library's antique fireplace, and manipulated a hidden latch concealed within the carved stone mantle. The heavy oak bookcase swung open, revealing William Collins’s private wall safe—one that not even Davidson knew existed.
Nathan entered his father's birthdate into the electronic keypad. The heavy steel door clicked open.
Inside lay a black leather journal and a high-capacity encrypted flash drive labeled: PROJECT NEMESIS.
Nathan opened the journal. On the very first page, in his father's familiar, rigid handwriting, was a note addressed directly to him:
Nathan,
If you are reading this, I am dead, and the storm has finally broken. I was a coward. When Davidson took Julian from us, I broke. I thought I could protect you and Julian's daughters by submitting to his blackmail and keeping Clara in the shadows. I was wrong. Fear only feeds monsters.
The drive in this safe contains every transaction, every hitman invoice, and every secret account Davidson has used for twenty years. It is enough to send him to prison for ten lifetimes. But be warned: Davidson will tear down the world before he lets that drive reach the light.
Forgive me, my son. Be the father to those girls that I failed to be to you.
Nathan gripped the drive tightly in his fist. Tears pricked at the edges of his eyes, but he wiped them away instantly.
He walked down the hall to the girls' room. Lily was awake, sitting up in the massive bed, holding her sister's hand as Maya slept.
Nathan walked in and knelt by the bedside. "Lily," he said gently.
"Is Mommy coming back?" the little girl asked softly, her big blue eyes searching his.
Nathan reached out and gently smoothed her hair. "I am going to bring your mommy home. I give you my word as a Collins."
May you like
Lily looked at him for a moment, then reached under her pillow and pulled out a small, tarnished silver key on a string. "Mommy gave me this. She said if you ever found us, to give you the key to Grandpa’s secret box."
Nathan took the key. It was an old skeleton key—matching the lock on an iron chest sitting in his father's study.
