Chapter 13 - The Voice From the Crypt
The video file sat untouched in the center of the screen, waiting for our click.
My finger felt heavy as I touched the trackpad.
The video expanded to full screen.
The camera was clearly hidden behind a bookshelf, looking down into an immaculate white office.
Sitting at the desk was not Richard Hale.
It was Lily.
Her hair was pulled back tightly, unlike the loose curls she wore when she baked cookies with Emma.
She wore a dark tailored suit, her expression cold, composed, and calculating.
Across from her sat a man whose face remained obscured by the shadow of the doorway.
"We are losing control of Subject Two," the man in the shadow spoke with a raspy, foreign accent.
"Subject One is developing genuine emotional attachment to the child."
Lily did not flinch.
She signed a document without looking up.
"Subject One will do whatever is necessary to protect the child," she said calmly on the recording.
"That was always the psychological foundation."
"The deeper his love, the more stable the integration."
My lungs seized.
I couldn't draw a breath.
The room began to spin around me as Lily’s words echoed through the silent house.
*Subject One.*
She was talking about me.
"And what about Julian?" the man asked.
"The twin baseline?"
Lily set her pen down with a quiet tap.
"Julian was an anomaly," she replied in that terrifyingly detached tone.
"If he interferes, Richard will neutralize him."
"Adrian must believe that he is an ordinary husband fighting against a cruel conspiracy."
"He must believe his love for Emma is the only authentic thing left in this world."
"Because if he discovers the truth about Emma's genetic origin, he will destroy the facility himself."
The video abruptly cut to black.
Julian stared at the screen, his jaw clenched so tight the muscle twitched visibly.
I stood up so violently that my chair tumbled backward, crashing against the hardwood floor.
"No," I choked out, shaking my head violently.
"No, that’s not real."
"It's a deepfake."
"Hale made that to turn us against each other."
Julian didn't look at me.
He slowly reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, worn leather journal.
"I found this in Hale’s private safe the night we broke into his estate," Julian said softly.
"I didn't want to show it to you because I wanted you to have peace."
"I wanted Emma to have a father who believed in love."
"Julian, what is that?" I demanded, tears of fury burning behind my eyes.
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"Lily wasn't Hale’s victim, Adrian," Julian whispered, looking directly into my eyes with infinite pity.
"Lily was his employer."
