Chapter 11 - THE ROAD TO BLACKSTONE HARBORClaire regained consciousness while paramedics examined her.
A woman dressed as a federal officer had arrived with two men.
They claimed Sophie needed to be moved because the address was compromised.
Claire asked for identification.
The woman sprayed something into the room.
When Claire awakened, Sophie was gone.
Security footage showed the abductors using an official-looking government vehicle.
The license plate belonged to a car reported stolen that morning.
Ethan blamed himself for allowing Sophie to be moved away from him.
Detective Bennett refused to let him surrender to panic.
“Celeste needs her alive and recognizable.”
“That does not make her safe.”
“No.”
“But it gives us time.”
Blackstone Harbor was a private waterfront estate surrounded by forest.
It had once belonged to a shipping family.
Richard purchased it through a shell company six months before Anna’s death.
The property included a mansion, a private dock, and a helicopter landing area.
Federal agents prepared a rescue operation.
Celeste demanded that Ethan arrive alone with Anna’s notebook.
Detective Bennett created a copy.
A tracking strip was hidden inside the binding.
Ethan wore a small transmitter beneath his shirt.
He drove toward Blackstone Harbor just before midnight.
Rain struck the windshield.
The weather reminded him of the night Anna died.
A voice called through the car’s hands-free system.
Celeste.
“Are Anna died.
A voice called through the car’s hands-free system.
Cel you alone?”
“Yes.”
“Do you have the notebook?”
“Yes.”
“Did you read the missing page?”
“There was no missing page.”
Celeste laughed.
“Anna always loved unfinished warnings.”
“Let me speak to Sophie.”
There was a pause.
Then Sophie’s voice filled the car.
“Daddy?”
“I’m coming.”
“They put me in a room with boats on the walls.”
“Are you hurt?”
“No.”
“Keep the picture with you.”
“Richard took it.”
Ethan gripped the steering wheel.
Celeste returned to the call.
“If I see police, Marcus leaves without signing.”
“You already have forged papers.”
“We need Anna’s original trust seal.”
Ethan looked at the notebook beside him.
He had found no seal.
Then he understood.
The back cover was unusually thick.
Anna had hidden something inside it.
Celeste believed the notebook contained the final object needed to steal the trust.
Ahead, the gates of Blackstone Harbor opened.
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A man stood in the rain waiting for Ethan’s car.
It was Noah Grant.
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