Chapter 35
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The next morning, the sun rose bright and brilliant over the city, casting a warm, golden light through the windows of the advocacy center. I arrived at my office early, unlocking the front door and letting the fresh, crisp air circulate through the bustling corridors.
The phone on my desk was already ringing.
I walked over, picked up the receiver, and pressed it to my ear.
"Domestic Worker Advocacy Program, this is Emma," I answered, my voice steady, professional, and entirely grounded.
"Hello," a small, frightened voice whispered on the other end of the line. The connection was slightly muffled, as if the caller was hiding in a closet or a bathroom. "My name is Maria. I work for a family in the hills. I... I saw something yesterday. Something terrible. I didn't know who to call, but a friend told me that you protect people like us."
I closed my eyes for a fraction of a second, feeling the familiar, heavy weight of responsibility settle comfortably onto my shoulders. It was the same terrified tone Sofia had used, the same desperate whisper Ethan had forced through the brick wall all those years ago.
There would always be arrogant, cruel people who believed their wealth allowed them to operate in the shadows. There would always be secrets hidden behind expensive paintings and locked basement doors.
But there would also always be someone listening.
"You called the exact right place, Maria," I said, pulling a fresh, blank legal pad toward me and clicking my pen open. "You are completely safe. Take a deep breath, and tell me exactly what you saw. I am listening."
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I sat in my chair, bathed in the bright morning light, ready to begin the work all over again. The hidden chambers of the world were vast and terrifying, but they were no longer impenetrable.
We had the keys now. And we were never going to stop opening the doors.
