My Boss’s Hidden Heir (Elara and Marcus) novel Chapter 190

Chapter 190

Chapter 190

Elara’s POV

The distorted voice echoed through the speaker, artificial and cold.

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“Twenty million in cash. You have twelve hours. Instructions will follow. Involve the police and your children

die.”

The line went dead.

For a moment no one moved. The silence in the room was absolute, broken only by the faint hum of Dante’s tracing equipment still connected to the phone.

Then Elara started shaking.

Not crying, not screaming, just shaking like her body had forgotten how to be still. Her hands trembled in her lap, her shoulders quaking with tremors she couldn’t control.

“What the fuck,” she whispered. “What the actual fuck.”

Marcus was beside her immediately, pulling her against his chest. “It’s okay. We’re going to handle this. I have the money, El. Twenty million is nothing. We’ll give them whatever they want and get our babies back.”

“It’s not about the money-”

“I know you’re scared but this is good news. They want money, which means they’re keeping the twins alive. This gives us leverage, gives us a way to get them back safely.”

Elara pulled away from him, her eyes wild. “Marcus, stop. Just stop talking for a second.”

He froze, clearly taken aback by the sharpness in her voice.

Dante was typing on his laptop, his face illuminated by the blue screen glow. “The call came from a burner phone, routed through three different towers to obscure location. Whoever this is knows what they’re doing.”

“Can you trace it?” Richard asked from where he stood near the window.

“Not with the equipment I have here. I’d need access to carrier databases and that requires warrants which requires involving the police which we apparently can’t do.”

Elara’s mother had her hand pressed over her mouth, tears streaming down her face. “Twenty million dollars. Who has that kind of money just lying around?”

“I do,” Marcus said. “Or I can have it by tomorrow. I’ll liquidate assets, pull from offshore accounts, whatever it

takes.”

Mimi was pacing again, her movements jerky and agitated. “But how do we know they’ll actually give the babies back? What if we pay and they just disappear?”

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Chapter 190

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“Then we hunt them down and make them regret ever touching my family.” Marcus said, his voice flat and dangerous.

Emeka had moved to sit on the arm of the couch near Elara. “The voice was distorted. Could you tell if it was male or female?”

“Male,” Dante said. “The pitch modulation software can’t completely hide vocal cord structure. Definitely a

man.”

Elara was still shaking, her mind racing. The voice had been distorted but there was something underneath the artificial warping. Something familiar.

“El?” Marcus put his hand on her knee. “Talk to me. What’s going on in your head?”

“I need everyone to be quiet for a second.”

The room fell silent. Elara closed her eyes and replayed the phone call in her mind. The words, the cadence, the slight pause before “they’re dead” like the speaker was enjoying the threat.

We have your kids. Bring twenty million in cash.

She’d heard that rhythm before. That particular way of structuring sentences, of emphasizing certain words.

You involve the police, they’re dead.

The artificial distortion had masked the tone but it couldn’t completely hide the speaker’s natural speech patterns. The way he said “your kids” with just a hint of mockery. The way “twenty million” came out smooth and practiced like he’d rehearsed it.

Elara’s eyes snapped open.

“Oh my God,” she breathed.

Marcus gripped her shoulders. “What? What is it?”

“The voice. I know that voice.”

“How? It was completely distorted-”

“I know but there’s something underneath the distortion. The way he talks, the rhythm of his sentences. Marcus, I’ve heard this person speak before.”

Dante looked up from his laptop. “Are you sure? Voice distortion software is designed specifically to prevent recognition.”

“I’m sure. I don’t know how I’m sure but I am. That voice, even distorted, I’ve heard it recently.”

Her mother leaned forward. “Who? Who do you think it is?”

Elara’s mind was spinning through possibilities. Someone she’d spoken to recently who would have reason to kidnap her children. Someone with resources and planning capability. Someone who knew their routines,

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Chapter 190

their security, their vulnerabilities.

And then it clicked into place with such perfect clarity that she couldn’t believe she hadn’t seen it immediately.

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The late-night visit. The questions about the twins. The way he’d smiled when he mentioned their beds.

“It’s Julius,” Elara said.

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