Chapter 342

Chapter 342:

Victoria’s eyes narrowed. “So she’d take Camille somewhere connected to that belief. Somewhere that represents what was ‘stolen’ from her?”

“Exactly.” Stefan turned to face them. “And I think I know where.”

He pointed to a location on the map, a rural area north of the city. “The Lewis family had a hunting cabin here. Camille and Rose spent summers there as teenagers. Rose always said it was where she felt most like part of the family, before things changed between them.”

“Why would she take Camille there?” Agent Chen asked. “We’d check family properties immediately.”

“Because it’s not in the Lewis family anymore,” Stefan explained. “They sold it years ago to a developer. The land was cleared, the cabin torn down. There’s nothing there now, according to official records.”

A spark of understanding lit in Alexander’s eyes. “But?”

“But Rose told me once that she bought it back through a shell company. Said she couldn’t bear for strangers to destroy her ‘only real home.’ She used a different name, different paperwork. There would be no way to connect it to her.”

Victoria was already on the phone, instructing her assistant to find records of all property transactions in that area for the past five years. Alexander studied the location on the map, calculating distances, approach routes, and possible extraction plans.

“We need satellite imagery of that area,” he told Agent Chen. “Current images, not whatever is in the public databases.”

Chen nodded, already contacting her team. “If there’s a structure there, we’ll find it.”

As the room erupted into focused activity, Alexander stepped outside onto the deck, needing a moment to breathe. The lake stretched before him, peaceful and oblivious to the nightmare unfolding. Somewhere out there, Camille was in Rose’s hands. Afraid. Possibly hurt. Definitely in danger.

The thought nearly brought him to his knees.

Stefan joined him, his face reflecting similar torment. “We’ll find her,” he said quietly. “Rose wants an audience for her revenge. She won’t rush this.”

“Forty-eight hours,” Alexander reminded him, the deadline burning in his mind.

“Rose is theatrical,” Stefan insisted. “She wants to draw this out, make Camille suffer. The deadline is just to pressure us, make us desperate.”

Alexander turned to look at him. “And is it working? Are we desperate?”

Stefan met his gaze steadily. “Yes. But that doesn’t mean we’re wrong about the cabin. Rose is obsessed with symbols, with proving points. Taking Camille back to where they were once family, before everything fell apart—that fits her twisted logic.”

Victoria’s voice called them back inside. Her assistant had found something.

“Property records show the old Lewis cabin land was purchased by a company called Phoenix Rises LLC six months ago,” she reported. “Building permits were filed one month later.”

The irony of the company name, Phoenix, the symbol Camille had chosen for her foundation, was not lost on any of them.

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