Chapter 3 – The Secret Hidden Before Midnight
Julian's fingers tightened around the crayon drawing until the paper crumpled in his hand.
Daddy, please save Mama before tonight.
He read the sentence again.
And again.
His pulse thundered in his ears.
The handwriting was unmistakably that of a young child.
Not coached.
Not staged.
A desperate plea.
Behind him, Camila glanced over his shoulder.
"What is that?"
Julian folded the drawing before she could read it.
"Nothing."
Camila frowned.
"Nothing? You've been staring at that piece of paper like you've seen a ghost."
Julian didn't answer.
His eyes were fixed on the service hallway where Elena had disappeared.
Something terrible was going to happen before midnight.
He didn't know what.
But he knew one thing.
He wasn't leaving this hotel.
Inside the employees' corridor, Elena pushed the housekeeping cart with trembling hands.
Richard Mercer walked beside her without saying a word until the security cameras were out of sight.
Then his pleasant smile vanished.
"I told you," he said quietly.
"No contact."
Elena kept walking.
"I didn't speak to him."
"You looked at him."
She swallowed.
"He recognized me."
Mercer suddenly grabbed the handle of the cart, forcing it to stop.
His voice became cold.
"You were given one job."
"Stay invisible."
"You failed."
Elena looked down.
"I'm sorry."
Mercer leaned closer.
"You don't apologize to me."
"You apologize to the people who own your life."
A chill ran through her body.
"They're watching."
He nodded toward a black security camera mounted above the hallway.
"They've already seen everything."
Julian wasn't the type of man who waited for answers.
He created them.
Within minutes, his private security chief answered the encrypted call.
"Marco."
"Yes, Mr. Rossi."
"I need every record on the Grand Alcazar Hotel."
"Ownership."
"Management."
"Employees."
"Security contractors."
"Everyone."
Marco hesitated.
"You think this is connected?"
"I know it is."
"I want everything in thirty minutes."
"Understood."
Julian ended the call.
Camila crossed her arms.
"You're actually investigating a maid?"
Julian slowly looked at her.
"She's my wife."
Camila forced a smile.
"You've been separated for months."
"We're still married."
"You've moved on."
"I never divorced her."
Those words hit Camila harder than she expected.
For the first time since they began dating, she realized something unsettling.
Julian had never once told her he loved her.
Meanwhile, Elena entered the basement laundry facility.
Industrial machines roared around her.
Steam filled the air.
The other employees avoided eye contact.
Nobody spoke.
Nobody smiled.
Everyone looked frightened.
An elderly cleaner quietly slipped beside Elena.
"They know."
Elena froze.
"How much?"
"The owner."
"The lawyer."
"And the woman."
Camila.
Elena closed her eyes.
It had begun.
The old woman pressed something into Elena's hand.
A tiny silver key.
"You'll need this tonight."
Before Elena could ask another question, two security guards entered the room.
The old cleaner immediately returned to work as though nothing had happened.
One guard approached Elena.
"Mr. Mercer wants you upstairs."
Her stomach dropped.
"So soon?"
The guard didn't answer.
Thirty-five minutes later, Marco called back.
His voice sounded unusually tense.
"Boss..."
"What?"
"I've never seen anything like this."
Julian walked away from the crowded lobby.
"Talk."
"The ownership records don't make sense."
"What do you mean?"
"The Grand Alcazar officially belongs to the Moretti Hospitality Group."
"I know that."
"But the company only owns the building."
Julian frowned.
"And?"
"The operating company is different."
"Who owns it?"
A brief silence followed.
Marco spoke carefully.
"The controlling shareholder is hidden behind six offshore corporations."
"I traced them anyway."
Julian stopped walking.
His heartbeat slowed.
"Who?"
Marco exhaled.
"The final beneficiary..."
"...is someone named Isabella Moretti."
Julian searched his memory.
He had never met anyone by that name.
"Who is she?"
"That's the strange part."
"There are no photographs."
"No interviews."
"No public records."
"It's like she doesn't exist."
Julian looked up toward the top floor of the hotel.
Someone had built an empire without ever appearing in public.
His instincts screamed that Isabella Moretti was the person behind Elena's disappearance.
Then Marco said something that made the situation even darker.
"Boss..."
"What now?"
"I checked the employee records."
"There is no Elena Rossi."
Julian wasn't surprised.
"She uses Elena Carter."
Marco's breathing became heavier.
"No."
"There isn't any Elena Carter either."
Julian's expression hardened.
"What are you saying?"
"I'm saying..."
"...your wife has been working inside this hotel for eight months..."
"...without existing in any employment database."
Before Julian could respond, the lobby lights flickered once.
Then twice.
Every chandelier suddenly went dark.
The Grand Alcazar Hotel was plunged into complete darkness.
A woman's terrified scream echoed from somewhere above.
Seconds later...
The emergency lights flashed on in deep red.
A calm computerized voice filled every hallway.
"Security lockdown initiated."
"All exits have been sealed."
Julian's heart skipped a beat.
May you like
Then, through the red emergency lighting, he saw three armed men in black tactical uniforms running toward the employees' corridor—
The exact corridor where Elena had disappeared.
