I look out the window at the ocean far below, dark and endless, and try not to think about what’s waiting for us in New York.
Cassian is still out there. Still searching, or maybe he’s given up by now. Six years is a long time. But if he is still looking, if Cassian sees the twins even once, he’ll know. One look at Finn’s face or Liam’s eyes, and he’ll know they’re his.
And I have no idea what happens after that.
15
CASSIAN
Declan walksinto my office without knocking.
That alone tells me something significant has happened. He knows better than to interrupt unless it’s urgent.
“We have movement,” he says, dropping a manila folder on my desk. “Vance family member just landed at JFK two hours ago. Private plane from Shannon Airport.”
Shannon.
Ireland.
My hand stills on the folder. “Who?”
“Aurelia Vance. She’s back.”
Everything stops.
I open the folder and spread the contents across my desk. Surveillance photos taken at the airport. A woman with dark hair walking through a private terminal, head down, moving quickly. The images are grainy, taken from a distance, but clear enough.
It’s her.
Six years older. Natural hair color now, no more black dye. No colored contacts hiding her eyes. Just Aurelia Vance, looking exactly like she did in the file photos I pulled years ago when I first connected Catherine to the Vance family.
The woman from the plane.
The woman who disappeared six years ago.
The woman I’ve been searching for since the moment she vanished.
“You’re sure it’s her,” I say, even though I can see it is.
“Positive. Facial recognition confirmed it. She flew in under her real name, no attempts to hide her identity. Julian Vance had a car waiting for her at the airport. She’s staying at the family estate in Manhattan.”
I pick up one of the photos and study it. She looks thinner than I remember. More guarded. There’s tension in her shoulders, wariness in the way she moves. Like someone who’s been running for a long time and isn’t sure if she’s safe yet.
“Six years,” Declan says. “She’s been gone for six years, and suddenly she comes back. Why now?”
“Victor’s dead. Julian is in charge. He’s the one who brought her home.”
“So she was hidden the whole time. Just like we thought.”
I set the photo down and lean back in my chair. “Get me everything. Where she goes, who she sees, full surveillance on her movements.”
Declan hesitates. “Cass, the Vance estate is locked down tight. Julian has security everywhere since taking over. Getting close enough for detailed surveillance is going to be difficult.”
“Then make it happen anyway.”
“It’ll take time. And resources.”
“I don’t care what it takes. I want to know everything about where she’s been and what she’s doing now.”
