Chapter 7: The Enemy Inside the House
The sound of my son crying was the only thing I heard.
Not the gunshot.
Not the alarms that started screaming through the house.
Not Darius shouting orders.
Not the footsteps of my security team rushing through the halls.
Only Kai.
My son.
My baby.
I ran.
I didn’t think.
I didn’t calculate.
I didn’t care who was armed or who was waiting.
Every instinct I had as a father took over.
The stairs blurred beneath my feet.
The nursery door was open.
My heart stopped.
For one terrible second, I saw the same nightmare I had lived with for six months.
Losing my family.
But then I saw him.
Kai was in his crib.
Alive.
Crying.
And standing beside him was Darius.
Holding a small piece of cloth against his arm.
He had been shot.
“Darius.””
“I’m good,” he said through clenched teeth.
He wasn’t.
Blood ran down his sleeve.
But his eyes stayed on Kai.
“Someone came through the back entrance.””
I grabbed my son.
Held him against my chest.
He immediately calmed.
Like he knew I was there.
Like he knew I would never let anyone take him.
“Who?”” I asked.
Darius looked toward the window.
“Couldn’t see.””
That answer didn’t satisfy me.
Nothing satisfied me anymore.
Not after Zora.
Not after Marcus.
Not after everything I thought I knew turned out to be a carefully built lie.
I looked around the room.
Nothing was missing.
Nothing was broken.
Except one thing.
The music box.
It was gone.
My chest tightened.
The same music box that connected Amara and Zora.
The same music box that carried the only evidence of my wife’s past.
Someone didn’t come for Kai.
They came for the truth.
By morning, my house looked like a crime scene.
Security teams searched every entrance.
Every camera.
Every vehicle.
But I already knew the worst part.
The person who attacked us understood my security.
They knew where the cameras were.
They knew how long it would take my guards to respond.
They knew exactly when to strike.
That meant they weren’t a stranger.
They were close.
Too close.
Lena sat in my office with her head down.
Amara stood by the window.
Darius had his arm wrapped but refused medical treatment beyond basic care.
Everyone was waiting for me to say something.
I didn’t.
Because I was thinking.
Marcus.
The man who knew my schedule.
My home.
My business.
My family.
The man who had access to everything.
But there was something that didn’t make sense.
Marcus was loyal to me for years.
If he wanted my money, he could have taken it.
If he wanted my company, he had opportunities.
So why Zora?
Why my child?
Why destroy a family?
“Lena,” I said.
She looked up.
“Yes?””
“Tell me everything about Marcus and Elias.””
She hesitated.
Then she began.
“Marcus didn’t start with Elias.””
“What does that mean?””
“He was approached.””
“By who?””
“Someone inside Elias’ organization.””
“Name.””
Lena looked at Amara.
Then at me.
“Zora’s doctor.””
The room went silent.
My stomach dropped.
The doctor.
The person who delivered my son.
The person who signed the papers.
The person who told me my wife was gone.
“No.””
Lena nodded.
“He was part of it.””
My hands tightened.
“Part of what?””
She looked at me.
“A cover-up.””
I felt like the air left the room.
“Explain.””
“Zora discovered what Elias had been doing for years.””
“Which was?””
“Using businesses, charities, and investments to hide illegal operations.””
I listened carefully.
Not because I didn’t believe her.
Because I needed every detail.
“Your wife found documents connecting Elias to her parents’ deaths,” Lena continued.
“She also found proof that he was connected to several disappearances.””
“And the doctor?””
“He helped make people disappear.””
My jaw clenched.
“How?””
Lena looked away.
“By making deaths look natural.””
The room became painfully quiet.
Suddenly, the hospital memories returned.
The confusion.
The missing records.
The unanswered questions.
The nurse who avoided my eyes.
The doctor who kept telling me there was nothing more they could do.
I had trusted them.
Because I was grieving.
Because I was broken.
Because I never imagined someone would use my pain as camouflage.
“What happened the night Zora gave birth?”” I asked.
Lena looked at me.
“She survived.””
My eyes closed.
I already knew.
“She survived?””
“Yes.””
“Then why did everyone tell me she died?””
“Because Elias needed her gone.””
My voice dropped.
“Where did they take her?””
Lena didn’t answer.
And I hated that silence.
“Where?””
“Somewhere safe.””
“Safe from who?””
She looked at me.
“Everyone.””
Before I could respond, my phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
Again.
My hands went cold.
I answered.
“Malik.””
Zora.
Her voice.
My entire body froze.
“Zora.””
“I know what happened.””
My eyes moved around the room.
“How?””
“Because they’re closer than you think.””
“Who?””
She took a shaky breath.
“The person who attacked your house.””
I waited.
Then she said:
“It was someone from my family.””
I frowned.
“What?””
A pause.
“Malik, there’s something I never told you.””
My grip tightened.
“What?””
“My sister Amara wasn’t the only person who survived.””
I looked at Amara.
She looked confused.
“Zora…”
“There was another sibling.””
The room stopped.
“What are you saying?””
“I’m saying the person trying to destroy us…”
Her voice cracked.
May you like
“Is someone who shares our blood.””
The call ended.
