Chapter 9: The Hidden Sanctuary
Chapter 9: The Hidden Sanctuary
By afternoon, the news of Alejandro’s sudden resignation had sent shockwaves through the financial world. The stock market tickers were flashing his name in red.
Inside the mansion, however, the chaos was different.
Alejandro walked up the stairs, heading toward the girls' wing to tell them the truth. But when he opened their playroom door, it was empty. He searched the bedrooms, the home theater, the kitchen.
Nothing.
Panic seized him. "Rosa! Where are they?" he shouted, running down the hall.
Rosa met him in the foyer, looking pale. "The front security gate was left unlatched by the departing board members. The girls... they aren't on the main property."
Alejandro didn't wait. He ran out into the cold afternoon air, his eyes scanning the snow-capped woods surrounding the estate. Then, he remembered. Deep within the northern edge of the property sat an old, dilapidated greenhouse—a place his late wife had loved, a place he had abandoned after her death.
He sprinted through the trees, his boots sinking into the slush.
When he slammed open the rusted iron door of the greenhouse, he found them. The four sisters were huddled together under a single wool blanket, sitting on an old wooden bench, shivering.
"Valeria!" Alejandro cried out, rushing toward them.
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Valeria looked up, her cheeks stained with tears. "Are we poor now, Daddy? We heard that man say you lost the empire because of us. Are you going to send us away?"
Alejandro’s heart shattered into a million pieces. He threw himself onto the dirty floor, wrapping his arms around all four of them, pulling them so close he could feel their rapid heartbeats.
