Benedict had never imagined freedom would feel this uncertain.He sat alone in a small café several miles from Ashcroft Manor, watching the morning traffic move beyond the window.For years, every morning had belonged to someone else.Ashcroft meetings.Board decisions.Financial reports.Crisis calls.Now there was only silence.His silence.Benedict opened his notebook.Three words were written across the first page.Ashcroft. Vandross. Ashfall.He stared at them.There had to be a connection.The question was how deep it went.His phone vibrated.A message from Mara.I found something. We need to talk.Benedict finished his coffee and left.Mara was waiting at Cole Strategic Advisory, surrounded by a stack of documents."You found Ashfall?""Part of it."She pushed a file across the desk.Benedict opened it.There were records from three companies that had ties to Vandross Capital inside.Mara pointed out that these companies were bought at different times. However, their money all

Benedict just sat there, his eyes fixed on his phone, even though the call was already over.Number 17.The words echoed in his mind.The same number from the archive.The same number connected to the old records.And now...The administrator had apparently left instructions concerning it.Benedict picked up his jacket.He needed answers.Just as he was about to go, a new message popped up from Mara.Don't go to Ashcroft Manor yet.Benedict frowned.He called her.She answered immediately."Why?""I found another record.""What kind?""Property records."Benedict waited.There was an old storage place that belonged to the Ashcroft Group."Where?""On the eastern side of the estate."His expression changed."The manor?""Yes.""Is it still there?"It's been closed for years, if you look back at the records."Why?""I don't know."Benedict looked toward the window."Can you find out?""I'm trying.""Do it."He ended the call.The answer was getting closer.And somehow...He was being le

The lights returned three minutes later.But the silence inside the library remained.Benedict stood beside Eleanor, still holding the note.Stop looking for the boy.He read it once more.Then folded it carefully.Eleanor watched him."They know we're here.""Yes.""They know what we're searching for.""Yes."Her voice trembled."Then how much do they know?"Benedict looked at her."Enough to be afraid."Eleanor lowered her eyes.For years, she had believed the past was something that had happened and ended.Now she understood.It had never ended.It had simply waited.Victor entered the library moments later."What happened?"Eleanor looked at him."Someone left this."She handed him the note.Victor read it.His face immediately hardened."Where did you find it?""Under the door."Victor looked toward the corridor."Did you see anyone?""No."Benedict studied him."You knew someone was watching us."Victor looked at him."I suspected.""That's not enough anymore."Victor sighed."I

Benedict read the message again.The boy left the manor alive.For twenty-four years, he thought his past was just a bunch of memories that didn't quite add up.Now he knew one thing with certainty.The child from Room 17 had survived.The question that followed was almost unbearable.Who had he become?Benedict placed the phone on the table.He didn't let himself jump to the obvious conclusion.Not yet.He needed proof.He called Mara."I need everything connected to the boy.""You mean the child from Room 17?""Yes.""There's barely anything.""Then find what was deliberately removed."Mara sighed."I'll try.""And Mara?""Yes?""Don't search for Benedict."She understood immediately."We search for the child.""Exactly."At Ashcroft Manor, Eleanor stood before the library shelves.She had spent most of the night thinking about the message.The boy left the manor alive.But if that's what really happened, it means someone must have come and taken him away.But why?And where?She op

Benedict stared at Victor.The room had gone completely silent.The issue at hand was no longer about whether or not a child had existed.They already knew there had been one.The question was who the child belonged to.What was it about him that the Ashcroft family wanted to get rid of so badly."Who was the child's mother?" Benedict asked again.Victor looked toward the old family portraits."Her name was Isabella Vale."Eleanor's expression changed."Vale?"Victor nodded."She was Margaret's younger sister."Benedict frowned."Why have I never heard her name?"Her name was taken off the family records, that's why."By whom?"Victor hesitated."Your grandfather ordered the records sealed."Benedict's eyes narrowed."Why?"Isabella had gotten involved with a person from the Ashcroft family, which was the reason.Damian stepped forward."Who?"Victor didn't answer.Benedict looked directly at him."Who was the father?""I don't know."Benedict's expression hardened."You expect me to