Chapter 2 - THE SILENT ALARM The doctor arrived within minutes.
Leo had a bruised elbow and a red mark across one forearm, but no serious injuries.
Physically, he had survived.
Emotionally, Jackson knew the damage would take longer to measure.
After the examination, Leo fell asleep in Jackson's bedroom with a security officer outside the door.
Jackson stayed beside him until Owen returned.
"We found something."
Jackson looked up.
Owen placed a tablet on the desk.
"The emergency device was pressed at 8:17:14."
Jackson stared at the timestamp.
"And again?"
"8:17:28."
"Both signals?"
"Reached the estate network."
Jackson's jaw tightened.
"But security received nothing."
Owen turned the screen.
"Someone rerouted emergency alerts from the game wing into a maintenance queue."
"When?"
"7:52."
Jackson's eyes narrowed.
Twenty-five minutes before Leo entered the room.
"Who had administrator access?"
"Three people."
"Owen."
"Me."
"The systems technician."
"He'd already gone home."
Jackson looked at him.
"And Chad."
Silence.
Jackson walked to the window.
The mansion looked peaceful from outside.
Warm lights glowed through tall windows. Guards moved quietly across the grounds. Everything appeared controlled.
But somewhere inside the walls, someone had changed the rules.
Someone had taken away his son's ability to call for help.
"Restore everything," Jackson said.
Owen nodded.
"And don't tell anyone we're checking."
Jackson looked back at the sleeping child.
"From this moment on, trust nobody who had access to that system."
May you like
He paused.
"Not even family."
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