Daniel looked at him.
"What?"
Michael grabbed Eleanor's hand.
"There's no time!"
They ran through the side corridor.
Behind them, footsteps grew louder.
They passed several storage rooms before reaching a metal staircase.
Michael opened a small door beneath it.
Inside was a narrow maintenance passage.
"Get in!"
Eleanor entered first.
Daniel followed.
Michael was about to close the door when one of the attackers appeared at the end of the corridor.
He raised his weapon.
Michael pushed the door shut.
A bullet struck the metal.
They ran deeper into the passage.
After several minutes, they emerged into a deserted alley.
Daniel immediately called emergency services using his personal phone.
Then he turned toward Michael.
"Now you're going to tell me everything."
Michael looked exhausted.
"There's something you need to understand."
Daniel stepped closer.
"No more riddles."
Michael looked at Eleanor.
"The people who took Lily weren't working alone. And the person who protected them for all these years was someone you both trusted."
Eleanor wiped her face.
"Captain Hensley?"
Michael nodded.
"And there's another person."
He paused.
"Someone who has been protecting the children all along."
"Who?"
Michael looked directly at Eleanor.
"Rebecca."
CHAPTER 10: THE SISTER WHO NEVER FORGOT
Eleanor felt the ground shift beneath her.
"Rebecca?"
Michael nodded.
"Your sister knew everything."
"That's impossible. She lost her memory."
"That's what everyone believed."
Eleanor grabbed his arm.
"Tell me what happened."
Michael took a deep breath.
"After Lily disappeared, Rebecca discovered that several children had been transferred using false medical records. She found the names of the people involved and started collecting evidence."
"Why didn't she tell me?"
"Because she believed someone was monitoring your phone and your apartment."
Eleanor shook her head.
"She could have trusted me."
"She was trying to protect you."
Michael looked away.
"Then one night, we discovered that Captain Hensley had been following us. He knew about the evidence. He knew where the children were being kept."
Daniel interrupted.
"How did Hensley get involved?"
"He was being paid by the organization. He helped make reports disappear, redirected investigations, and ensured that witnesses never reached the authorities."
"Who was running the organization?"
"Dr. Victoria Shaw."
Daniel clenched his jaw.
Michael continued.
"Rebecca had managed to copy the original medical records. We were going to meet a prosecutor who had agreed to investigate the case."
"What happened?" Eleanor asked.
"Someone gave away our location."
Michael looked at her.
"Rebecca was driving. We were followed by two vehicles. One forced us off the road."
Eleanor covered her mouth.
"The accident..."
Michael nodded.
"Rebecca was seriously injured. I managed to get her out of the car, but the people following us were already there."
"Where were you?"
"I was taken."
Eleanor stared at him.
Michael continued.
"I spent the next several years moving between locations. They wanted to know where the original evidence was. They believed Rebecca had given it to me."
"Did you tell them?"
"No."
"Why?"
"Because I knew what they would do with it."
Daniel studied Michael.
"Then how did you escape?"
"An employee inside the organization helped me. Her name was Anna. She had lost her younger brother through the same network."
Michael's expression softened.
"She risked everything to help me escape. But by the time I was free, the organization had already learned that Rebecca had survived."
Eleanor felt sick.
"So they left her in the hospital?"
Michael shook his head.
"At first, yes. But when she began recovering, they tried to silence her again."
"How?"
"By controlling her medical treatment and making sure she never regained access to the records she had collected."
Daniel frowned.
"That's a serious accusation. We need proof."
Michael nodded.
"I have it."
He reached into his jacket and removed a small memory card.
"Everything is here. Financial transfers, false medical records, names of officials, and the locations of several facilities."
Daniel took it carefully.
"Why didn't you send this to the police?"
"I didn't trust the police."
"Not all of us are corrupt."
"I know that now."
Michael looked at Daniel.
"Your daughter."
Daniel's expression changed.
"What about her?"
"I heard what happened. I'm sorry."
Daniel said nothing.
Michael continued.
"Your daughter was treated at St. Mary's, wasn't she?"
Daniel nodded slowly.
"How do you know that?"
"Because I saw your name in one of the old hospital reports. You were listed as a potential witness in a separate investigation."
Daniel's face hardened.
"What investigation?"
Michael looked at him.
"The hospital had been falsifying medical records for years. Your daughter's treatment file was altered."
Daniel froze.
"What?"
"I don't know whether it affected her treatment. I don't want to make assumptions. But the original file was among the records Rebecca collected."
Daniel felt his hands tighten.
For three years, he had accepted that his daughter's death was caused by a disease that no doctor could control.
He had never imagined that the medical records themselves might contain unanswered questions.
"Are you saying someone deliberately harmed my daughter?"
Michael shook his head.
"I'm saying you deserve to know the truth. But the evidence must be examined independently. We cannot assume what happened."
Daniel looked down at the memory card.
For a moment, his professional instincts fought against the grief he had spent years trying to control.