The chandelier light glinted off the champagne flutes as Sofia's birthday party reached its crescendo.
It was a picture of suburban perfection; teachers, classmates, and even the school principal mingled in the grand hall, nodding in approval at the polite decorum of the day.
But outside, the air was cold, and the shadows were long. Melissa didn't get the chance to sleep, Abuela had sent for her
She felt a chill that had nothing to do with the night breeze.
Abuela stood by the stone fountain, her face a mask of iron. Beside her, Antonio and Alejandra waited like sentinels.
"Is everything alright, Abuela?" Melissa asked, her voice small.
"Have your seat," Abuela commanded.
Melissa sat, her pulse beginning to thrum in her ears.
She looked to Antonio for a hint of mercy, but his eyes were hard.
"I'll cut to the chase," Abuela said, her tone clinical and sharp.
"Ten months ago, someone hacked into our systems. They stole files that cannot be replaced."
Melissa forced a nervous, fluttering smile.
"What has that got to do with me?"
Antonio exhaled a long, exhausted sigh, rubbing the bridge of his nose.
"It happened the day you came to my office for your interview, Melissa. The timing wasn't a coincidence."
"Wait—let me get this straight," Melissa countered, her indignation rising as a shield. "
You think I'm some master hacker just because I applied for a job?"
"Not likely," Antonio said, stepping closer.
"That same day, terrorists were being hunted by the Russians. They hacked the satellite to mask their escape, leaving every device in the city vulnerable. We were able to pull the traffic footage."
"I don't know what you're talking about," Melissa insisted, her hands shaking in her lap.
"I don't have whatever it is you're looking for."
Without a word, Antonio handed her an iPad.
The screen displayed a grainy, high-speed freeze-frame.
Melissa's breath hitched. It was her, white-knuckled behind the wheel of a speeding car.
In the passenger seat was a man—the ghost from her past—his fingers blurred over a laptop.
"You were the one driving," Alejandra added, her voice dropping to a whisper. "And that man? He's the one who tore through the satellite's firewalls."
"I don't care why you were being chased," Antonio said, his voice dropping to a dangerous register.
"I just want those files."
The silence stretched until it broke. Melissa slumped, the defiance leaking out of her.
"I didn't know this would affect anyone," she whispered. "I just wanted to keep her safe."
"Who?" Abuela asked.
"Sofia. She was in the car that day." Melissa looked up, her eyes bright with unshed tears.
"My friend took Sofia from us... when things went south, she told me to come get the baby. I met them at that restaurant... I knew something was off, but I pushed the unease away. When the shooting started, I just drove. I had to get her to safety. But if she has the files... there's no way in hell she'll give them back."
"Who is 'she'?" Antonio demanded.
Melissa shook her head, closing herself off.
"Nevermind. I can't help you."
"Melissa, you need to understand—"
"Mel!" Sunny's voice shattered the tension. She was running toward them, her face pale.
"Mel... have you seen Baby Bear?"
Abuela stood up instantly. "What do you mean?"
"It's time to cut the cake," Sunny panted, "but she's nowhere to be found. She's gone."
The world tilted. Melissa didn't wait for a plan. Her body moved before her brain could react, a predator's reflex.
She bolted toward the house, Ariana trailing close behind.
"Please remain calm," an announcer's voice echoed through the speakers in the hall.
"The birthday girl is preparing for her grand entrance."
Melissa slammed open the bedroom door.
Empty. The bed was made, the stuffed animals sat in a row, but the center of the room was a void.
Ariana walked slowly toward the nightstand.
"There's a note," she whispered.
Melissa snatched the paper. Her hands trembled so violently the ink seemed to dance.
By now, the others had crowded into the doorway.
"Read it," Sunny urged.
Melissa's voice was a ghost of itself.
"'Hello, Bianca. I finally got the opportunity to meet that which you took from me. For six years, you've hidden her.'"
She paused, the air leaving her lungs.
"It can't be," Ariana whispered.
Melissa continued, the words tasting like ash. "'Don't worry, she's in a special place. But first, let's play a game and pray she's fine. —V.'"
Melissa raked her fingers through her hair, a guttural sound escaping her throat.
"Vassago."
"He has her," Ariana cried out. "He has Sofia! Melissa, what are we going to do?"
"Who is Vassago?" Abuela asked, her authority wavering in the face of this new terror.
"Sofia's father," Sunny answered.
Abuela turned to Melissa, stunned. "You said her father died before she was born."
"I lied," Melissa snapped, her eyes flashing with a dark, cold fire. "The motherfucker is alive."
Sunny began to pace, her breathing coming in ragged hitches.
"No, no, no. He's going to take her. He's going to—"
"Calm the fuck down!" Antonio barked. "Spiraling won't find her."
A cellphone rang. The sound was shrill, cutting through the room like a blade. Melissa flipped it open.
"Heyy," a voice whispered. It was eerie, melodic, and entirely devoid of soul.
"Vassago," Melissa hissed.
"Speaker," Sunny mouthed. Melissa hit the button.
"Where is Sofia?" Ariana yelled into the phone.
"Sofia? Is that what she named it?" Vassago gave a light, mocking sigh.
"I always knew she had a thing for fictional disney characters."
"Where is she?" Melissa demanded.
"Why the rush, Bianca? I just want us to catch up. It's been so long."
"Cut the bullshit. Tell me where she is or I swear I'll—"
"You'll what? You'll do the same thing you did to me?"
"Quit the games," Ariana interrupted. "Where is your daughter?"
"Daughter? That's a strange word for something I was never allowed to see. You hid her away. Did you think I wouldn't find her?. Tell me... where is the witch who birthed her?"
"Vassago, I beg of you," Sunny pleaded, her voice breaking. "Where is Sofia?"
There was a pause. "You seem to be the only one who ever respected me, Esther," Vassago said smoothly.
"Fine. If you're looking for your precious girl... I put her in the same place Bianca—I mean Melissa—placed my first love."
Melissa's face went bloodless.
"Your first love?" Ariana asked.
"Irene," Vassago whispered.
"No," Melissa muttered, backing away. "No, please no..."
"Oh, it does ring a bell, doesn't it?"
"You killed Irene?" Ariana gasped, looking at Melissa in horror.
"No!" Melissa screamed. She shoved the phone into Antonio's hands and bolted from the room.
She tore through the house, checking closets, pantries, laundry rooms.
"Melissa, where are you going?" Sunny yelled, chasing her down the stairs.
Melissa gripped Ariana's arms. "Freezer... where is the freezer?"
"The only large one is in the basement," Alejandra said, pointing toward the heavy oak door.
Melissa didn't breathe as she descended the concrete steps.
The basement was a cavern of shadows, save for the hum of a large chest freezer sitting in the center of the floor.
She threw the lid open.
Sofia lay there, curled in a ball, her skin the color of porcelain, her eyelashes frosted with ice. She was unconscious.
"Call an ambulance!" Ariana screamed, scooping the child's frigid body into her arms.
"No, there's no time," Abuela took charge. "We'll take her to the hospital now. Move!"
As they rushed toward the cars, another phone rang in Sunny's hand, a phone she found by the basement door.
She answered on speaker, her voice trembling.
"Did you get my present?" Vassago asked.
Abuela ignored the voice, climbing into the Rolls-Royce with the child wrapped in blankets.
"Have you forgotten, Bianca?" Vassago's voice was a purr of malice.
"How you chopped Irene into pieces and placed her inside a freezer?"
"I didn't kill her!" Melissa screamed at the phone, standing in the driveway as the tail lights of the Rolls-Royce disappeared.
"I had nothing to do with that!"
"Liar! You knew she was pregnant with my child, yet you decided to hurt me anyway."
"I should have killed you when I had the chance," Melissa snarled, the last of her secrets crumbling.
"But Willow thought it would be a great idea for you and your daughter to get along. She was wrong."
"This is just the beginning," Vassago said, the line crackling with static.
"I'm coming for you next."
"I swear to God, Vassago, I will fucking kill you."
"I'll be waiting."
The line went dead.
Ariana turned to Melissa, her eyes wide with a new kind of fear.
"You killed a pregnant woman?" Ariana asked.
"I didn't," Melissa said, though her voice sounded hollow even to her own ears.
"I was at the wrong place at the wrong time. I was framed."
"Let's put a pin in the murder charges," Sunny said, her voice shaking.
"Baby needs us."
The ride to the hospital was silent.
Melissa sat in the back of Antonio's car, watching the blurred streetlights. The party was over. The war had only begun.