I Saved My Boss's Mute Daughter From His Cruel Fiancée Now I'm Being Framed

Back in my apartment, I was pacing a hole into the cheap carpet.

Think, Emma. Think.

I couldn't go to the police. Renata would have her high-priced lawyers chew me up and spit me out. I needed leverage.

I pulled out my phone and dialed the one person at the Callahan estate who had always been kind to me. Marcus, the head of security. He answered on the first ring.

"Emma," Marcus said, his voice tense. "You are in more trouble than you can possibly comprehend. The boss is ready to tear the city apart to find you."

"Marcus, please, you have to listen to me!" I practically begged. "I didn't kidnap her. I saved her! Renata was burning Lily with a curling iron. She did it on purpose! If I bring her back, Renata will kill her."

There was a long silence on the other end of the line.

"I know," Marcus finally said.

I froze. "What?"

"I found the curling iron," Marcus said quietly. "But Emma, a burned piece of hair isn't enough to take down a woman like Renata. She’s already claiming you did it. She’s telling Grant you burned Lily in a psychotic rage and then framed her."

My stomach plummeted. Of course. Renata was playing chess while I was playing checkers.

"Then it's my word against hers," I whispered, despair finally clawing at my throat. "And I'm nobody."

"Not exactly," Marcus said. "You remember six months ago, when Mr. Callahan had the entire house re-wired for the new smart system?"

"Yes..."

"He didn't trust the contractors. He had me install a secondary, closed-circuit security camera in every major room. Hidden. For his eyes only. It records directly to a private cloud server."

My heart hammered against my ribs. "There's a camera in the master bathroom?"

"Behind the ventilation grate," Marcus confirmed. "But I don't have the password. Only Mr. Callahan does. And right now, he's getting in his car to come find you. Emma... he tracked your phone."

A heavy, booming knock shattered the silence of my apartment. The door actually rattled on its hinges.