Chapter 265

Dominic's pen hovered over the list as he decisively crossed out Julian's name - and with it, Henry Thorne's as well.

Henry had visited his estate twice, but the boy had never ventured beyond the living room during either visit.

Lily, however, had managed to sneak upstairs once, where she'd been caught by the staff. Yet the child didn't strike him as particularly cunning - if she were, she wouldn't have burst into tears when discovered.

He kept Lily's name on the list but shifted his focus to Zoe Montgomery.

Could it possibly be her?

Every time Zoe came to the mansion, there were always people present. She'd never had an opportunity to slip into the study unnoticed.

With no other leads, Dominic had no choice but to wait for the security footage review.

He'd spent the entire night in the surveillance room, poring over recordings without a moment's rest.

On the day he'd brought Evelyn home, the security system had been compromised, leaving a critical three-hour gap. Previously, he'd only needed to confirm the cameras were operational - now he needed to understand exactly what had gone wrong.

Returning to his bedroom, sleep eluded him completely. The discovery of the missing box had left him feeling as though his chest had been torn open. If only he'd confronted his past demons sooner, he might never have needed to divorce Evelyn.

By noon, his security team had finally completed reviewing the past month's footage.

"Mr. Blackwood," the head guard reported, "we've examined all surveillance outside your study. No one entered besides you and Mrs. Wilkins. Each time Mrs. Wilkins exited, she carried only her cleaning supplies - nothing more."

Dominic closed his eyes in frustration. He'd never suspected Mrs. Wilkins - she'd served him faithfully for years. If she'd wanted to betray him, she'd had countless opportunities before now.

"The cameras malfunctioned the day Miss Thorne brought her children over," the guard suggested cautiously. "Is it possible someone accessed the study during that window?"

Dominic's expression darkened. After dismissing the guard, he immediately called Evelyn.

Seeing his name on her screen, Evelyn assumed it was work-related as she answered, "Dominic?"

"I've lost something," his voice rasped from exhaustion.

The unexpected statement caught her off guard. "What did you lose?"

"It was there a month ago. I've reviewed all the surveillance footage from the past month and found nothing. When you visited my home previously, your son disabled the security cameras - we're missing three hours of footage."

Understanding dawned on Evelyn, making her stomach clench. "Dominic Blackwood, I didn't take anything from you! I wouldn't!"

During their marriage, he'd given her countless expensive gifts - all of which she'd left behind when she moved out.

"I don't suspect you." His heart ached at her defensive tone. "Could you ask your children if they've seen a red wooden box?"

"There's no red box in my home. If they'd taken something from you, they would have told me," she said firmly, closing her laptop. "I'll check when I get home."

"Thank you," he replied heavily.

Hearing the strain in his voice softened Evelyn slightly. "You stayed up all night? Was it something important?"

"Vitally important." He massaged his temples, voice thick with emotion. "If you find that box... please don't open it."

Evelyn swallowed hard. She wanted to comfort him but didn't know how. Perhaps the best comfort would be recovering whatever he'd lost.

She left her office and headed straight for the elevator.

She'd always sensed Dominic was hiding something, but never imagined he'd lose whatever secret that box contained.

She couldn't imagine who might have taken it, but felt certain it wasn't Henry or Lily.

Though the children resented Dominic, stealing wasn't in their nature. Still, Evelyn resolved to search every inch of her home. What if the box was there after all?