One message.
"YOUR FATHER DID NOT DIE FOR NOTHING. MEET ME AT THE COURTHOUSE. COME ALONE."
Elena looked back at Daniel.
Then she deleted the message.
She knew she shouldn't go.
But she also knew that the truth was getting closer.
And someone was becoming desperate.
At 9:30 p.m., she arrived at the old municipal courthouse.
The building was surrounded by construction barriers.
A sign announced that renovation work had been suspended indefinitely.
Elena entered through a side door.
The interior was dark.
She followed the directions in the message until she reached a staircase leading underground.
At the bottom stood a metal door.
Room 07.
The brass key from Rachel fitted perfectly.
The door opened.
Inside was a small interrogation room.
A table.
Two chairs.
A camera.
And a large mirror covering one wall.
Elena stepped inside.
"Hello?"
A voice came from behind the mirror.
"You're late."
She turned.
A woman stood near the doorway.
She was wearing a grey coat and holding a folder.
Her face was familiar.
Elena stared at her.
"Who are you?"
The woman smiled.
"You really don't recognize me?"
Elena shook her head.
The woman placed the folder on the table.
"Look at the photograph."
Elena opened it.
Her blood ran cold.
It showed two little girls standing outside a hospital.
One was Elena.
The other was a girl she had never seen before.
On the back were two names.
ELENA CROSS β CHILD A.
SARAH WHITMORE β CHILD B.
Elena looked up.
"What does this mean?"
The woman sat down.
"It means that your entire life was built on a lie."
"Explain."
"Twenty years ago, Black Lantern was not simply a criminal operation. It was an experiment in identity manipulation."
Elena frowned.
"What kind of experiment?"
"Children of witnesses were separated from their families, given new identities, and placed with carefully selected guardians. The people behind the operation believed that controlling a person's history meant controlling their future."
Elena felt sick.
"You're saying I was taken?"
The woman nodded.
"Your mother was one of the first people who discovered the program. She tried to expose it. When that failed, she tried to rescue you."
Elena stared at the photograph.
"Who raised me?"
"Margaret Cross was your biological mother."
"Then who was the woman in the hospital photograph?"
The woman paused.
"Sarah Whitmore."
Elena looked confused.
"Why was she holding me?"
"Because she helped your mother escape with you."
"Then why did Daniel believe Sarah was his mother?"
The woman smiled sadly.
"Because she was."
Elena slowly understood.
Two children.
Two families.
Two identities.
And someone had deliberately switched their histories.
"Who are you?" she demanded.
The woman finally introduced herself.
"My name is Victoria Shaw."
Elena recognized the surname.
Rachel Shaw.
"Are you related to Rachel?"
"She's my daughter."
"Then why are you here?"
Victoria leaned forward.
"Because I am the last surviving member of the original Black Lantern leadership."
Elena reached for her weapon.
Victoria didn't move.
"Don't bother. If I wanted you dead, you wouldn't have made it through the door."
"Who controlled the operation?"
Victoria opened the folder.
Inside were photographs of senior officials, judges, police commanders, and wealthy businessmen.
At the center was a photograph of Captain Richard Hayes.
Elena frowned.
"Hayes?"
Victoria shook her head.
"Hayes was only a servant."
She turned the final page.
A photograph showed a man standing beside a young woman.
Elena recognized him.
The face was older, but unmistakable.
Jonathan Bell.
The man who had supposedly died twenty years earlier.
Beneath his photograph was a name.
DIRECTOR OF BLACK LANTERN: JONATHAN BELL.
Elena stepped backward.
"He's alive."
Victoria nodded.
"And he's been running the operation ever since."
"Where is he?"
Victoria looked toward the mirror.
"Behind you."
Elena spun around.
The door was closing.
A man stepped into the room.
He was wearing a dark suit.
His hair was grey, and his face carried a faint smile.
"Good evening, Detective Cross."
Elena raised her weapon.
"Jonathan Bell."
He smiled.
"Please. Call me Director."
"You're under arrest."
He laughed.
"On what charge?"
"Murder. Conspiracy. Kidnapping. Corruption."
"Those are very serious accusations."
"I have evidence."
"Do you?"
He glanced toward Victoria.
"She has been lying to you."
Victoria stood up.
"Don't listen to him."
Jonathan sighed.
"Still pretending to be the hero, Victoria?"
Elena moved toward the exit.
Jonathan raised one hand.
The lights flickered.
A loud mechanical click echoed from the ceiling.
The door locked.
Elena looked toward the camera.
It was now pointing directly at her.
Jonathan walked toward the table.
"Do you know why your father died?"
Elena's jaw tightened.
"Because you ordered it."
"No. Because he refused to understand the rules."
"What rules?"
Jonathan leaned forward.
"Everyone has a price, Detective. Some people want money. Some want power. Others want revenge."
He paused.
"But the most dangerous people are those who believe they have nothing left to lose."
Elena stared at him.
"Why did you take the children?"
Jonathan smiled.
"Because children grow up. They forget. They adapt. And eventually, they become useful."
Elena felt her stomach turn.
"You're a monster."
"Perhaps."
He opened another folder.