Chapter 356
Chapter 356:
Then Rose’s expression hardened. She straightened up, wiping all emotion from her face with practiced skill.
“Time’s up for today’s therapy session,” she said coldly. “I have preparations to make. Tomorrow, we begin with Alexander.”
She gathered her laptop, tucking it under her arm. At the door, she paused, looking back at Camille with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Sleep well, sister. Tomorrow will be a day you’ll never forget.”
The door slammed shut behind her. The lock clicked into place with a sound of finality.
Alone in the half-darkness, Camille tested her restraints again, feeling the rope bite into her skin. Her mind raced through possibilities, through plans and contingencies. She thought of Alexander searching for her, of Victoria fighting her cancer and this new threat simultaneously.
Rose wanted her to break, to collapse under the weight of fear and helplessness. That was the one thing Camille would not give her.
As the screens continued to replay the burning building, the chaos, the destruction, Camille closed her eyes and breathed deeply. Victoria had taught her that strength came not from never feeling fear, but from continuing to fight despite it.
When Rose returned tomorrow, she would not find a broken woman waiting to be tortured. She would find Camille Kane, the phoenix who had already risen once from the ashes of a life destroyed. And phoenixes were not afraid of fire.
Stefan paced the length of the makeshift command center, running his hands through his hair for the hundredth time. The room buzzed with activity—Alexander’s security team, FBI agents, police liaisons, all working frantically to find Camille. Twenty-six hours had passed since her abduction. Twenty-six hours of dead ends and false leads.
“This isn’t working,” Stefan muttered, stopping at the map, where pins marked locations they’d already searched. “We’re missing something. Rose could have taken her anywhere.”
Alexander looked up from a table covered with files, dark circles under his eyes. “Every property connected to Rose or her aliases has been searched. Twice.”
“It’s not about property records,” Stefan said, something nagging at the back of his mind. “It’s about meaning. Rose does everything with purpose. She’d want somewhere that… that connects to their past.”
He closed his eyes, trying to focus. Images flashed through his mind: Camille showing him old family photos, telling stories of her childhood—stories from before Rose came into their lives.
“Wait,” Stefan said suddenly, the memory sharpening. “The Lewis summer cabin. Cedar Lake.” The room fell silent.
“What cabin?” Alexander asked, standing up straight.
Stefan grabbed his phone, dialing with shaking fingers. “Mr. and Mrs. Lewis might know. They had a vacation property when Camille was young.”
Within twenty minutes, Richard and Margaret Lewis rushed into the command center, their faces lined with worry. Margaret clutched a photo album to her chest like a shield.
.
.
.