The message ended, but nobody moved.
Bring me the first-born daughter, or Adrian Harrison dies.
The words remained on the dark screen.
Elena stood beneath the altar, still holding Rosemary’s wedding ring.
Evelyn was beside her.
Adrian was watching the screen as though he could force the image to return through sheer will.
Marcus broke the silence.
“We have less than an hour.”
Adrian turned toward him.
“We’re not making the exchange.”
Elena looked at him.
“Adrian.”
“No.”
“They have Victor.”
“And if we hand them one of you, they’ll have everything.”
“The first-born is what they want.”
“They want the first-born alive,” Adrian said. “That means they need something from her.”
Marcus nodded.
“He’s right.”
Elena looked between them.
“What could they need?”
Marcus glanced at t
