I had to talk to Alex. The small jam and sugar notes were not enough. I needed a clear message. A warning that Hayden knew everything and was ready to hunt him.
I was locked in my room most of the time. David watched my door. The camera watched my every move.
I thought about the kitchen. The guards never checked the recycling bin closely. They only cared about what was going in the house, not what was leaving.
And I saw the cleaning ladies sometimes. There were two of them. One older lady and one younger lady. The younger one was quiet. She looked sad all the time.
I needed a system that looked normal on the camera but was a secret code.
The idea came to me when Margaret brought my dinner. I had a small cookbook on my shelf. It was a fake book. I had never opened it.
The next day, when Margaret came for her check in, I asked her for something.
"Margaret, I am bored," I said. I looked right at the camera, pretending I was talking for Hayden. "Can I have some paper and a pencil. I want to write down some recipes to try when I am allowed in the kitchen again."
Margaret looked scared. "I don't know. Mr. Vance might not like that."
"It's just cooking," I said. "He wants me to be a perfect wife, perfect wives cook. Tell him I am practicing. Please."
Margaret did not want to argue. She nodded and left.
A little later, a guard brought me a small pad of paper and a pencil.
I sat down and started to write. I wrote a fake recipe. A recipe for a simple cake.
I wrote the ingredients first. They were just normal ingredients. Flour, sugar, butter.
But the instructions were the code.
I wrote: Add two cups of flour. (F for Father)
I wrote, Mix quickly with one cup of sugar. (S for Stole)
I wrote: Fold in two tablespoons of butter. (B for Business)
The whole recipe was a secret message. I used the first letter of the key word to make a real message.
The first message I wrote was simple. It was about the danger.
Recipe: Chocolate Cake
Ingredients List.
Instructions:
Heat oven to 350.
Eggs are important for binding.
Listen for the timer.
Pour batter into the pan.
Hayden Eats Lunch Promptly. It meant: HELP.
I waited until the end of the day. David was out of sight. I slipped the recipe into the small recycling bin by my desk. I put it on top of a used paper towel so it looked like trash.
The next morning, I was nervous. I waited for the cleaner.
The younger woman came in. She was quiet. She had short dark hair. Her name tag said Grace.
She emptied the trash. She grabbed the recipe paper with the paper towel. She crumpled it up with the trash. She did not even look at it.
My heart sank. She just threw it away.
Then she walked to the door. She looked back at me quickly. She put one finger up to her mouth.
She knew. She saw the code, she took the message.
I felt a rush of hope. I was not alone.
The next day, Grace came in again. She was cleaning the bathroom. I walked over to the door.
"Thank you," I whispered.
She kept cleaning the mirror. She didn't look at me. She just kept wiping the glass.
"I can't talk," she mouthed the words. "But I can take the notes."
"Do you know who to give them to," I mouthed back.
"I know the right people," she mouthed. "Be careful. Write small. Never look at the paper when you drop it."
I was so thankful. I did not know her, but she was risking her job for me.
The next message was a clear warning to Alex.
Recipe: Lemon Bars
Ingredients List.
Instructions:
Always Lay Eggs Xactly Centered Here Even Now. (Alex Chen).
He Is Near To Injure Now Guards. (Hunting).
Go Out Now Escape. (Gone).
I dropped the paper under a piece of old newspaper in the recycling bin. Grace took it out fast.
The next afternoon, Grace came to clean again. She was cleaning the curtains by the window. I walked over.
"Did he get it," I whispered.
She shook her head. "I can't be sure. But my contact said the message got to the right hands."
She paused. She wiped the same spot on the curtain twice.
"Be careful with the notes," she said quietly. "Marcus is asking about the recipes."
Marcus. Hayden's assistant. The one who took over after my dad died.
"Marcus," I whispered. "What is he asking."
"He told the guards that you are a financial illiterate person," Grace said. "He said you have no reason to be writing down recipes. He thinks you are hiding money numbers in the notes. He told the staff to watch the trash closely."
I felt a knot in my stomach. Marcus was smart. He was the one who helped my uncle steal the company. He knew how to look for tricks.
"Is Alex still working on the case," I asked her.
Grace leaned closer to the curtain. "Yes. My contact said he is very close. He found a hidden financial trail in the old company reports. Something big. Something that could link Hayden's father directly to your uncle."
I felt hope again. Alex was still fighting. He was close to the truth.
"Thank you, Grace," I whispered.
She did not say anything. She just finished the curtain and left the room.
The next morning, Hayden did not come for his normal check in. He came with my breakfast.
He walked into the room himself. He had the tray. No David. No guard.
He put the tray down on the table. He stood there.
"Good morning, Aliyah," he said. His voice was soft. Too soft.
"Where is David," I asked.
"I told him to wait downstairs," Hayden said. "I wanted to talk to you without the security watching every word."
He sat down in the chair opposite me. He looked calm and almost kind.
"Eat your breakfast," he said. "You are too thin."
I picked up the fork. I did not trust him.
"I know you hate being here," he said. "I know you want to leave. But I want to tell you something. I was wrong to punish you so hard."
I looked up. "Wrong."
"Yes," he said. "I was acting like my father. Using control instead of trust. I hate that I became him."
He was talking about his father again. The man who made him sign the papers.
"I want to try again," Hayden said. "I want to give you back some freedom. I will tell David to unlock your door during the day. You can go to the library. You can go to the garden. No cameras in the garden."
My heart started beating fast. Freedom. The garden. That was my way out.
"Why," I asked him. "Why now."
"Because I saw the way you looked at me last time," he said. "You saw my pain. You saw that I am also a prisoner. We are in this together, Aliyah. We are both controlled by the greed of our family. We need to work together."
He leaned across the table. His eyes were not cold. They looked warm. Almost gentle.
"I am not the monster you think I am," he said. "I just want the chaos to end. We can end it together."
He was giving me freedom. He was talking about trust. He was being kind.
It was too easy.
I remembered what Grace said. Marcus suspects something. Hayden is suddenly kind the day after Marcus starts looking into the notes.
This was a trap.
He was giving me freedom to see who I would meet in the garden. He was trusting me to see if I would run to Alex.
He was testing me to see who I was loyal to.
"I appreciate that, Hayden," I said. I tried to keep my voice flat. "Thank you for letting me go outside. It's hard to be locked up."
"I know it is," he said. He smiled. A real smile. It did not reach his eyes. His eyes were still sharp. They were watching me.
He stood up. "I have a business meeting. I will be gone until dinner. David will unlock the door for you in one hour. Please, try to be honest with me, Aliyah."
He walked out and closed the door. I heard the lock turn.
He was gone for his meeting. David was downstairs. Marcus was suspicious. Alex was close to finding a financial trail.
And I had one hour before the lock clicked open. I could go to the garden.
I had to decide if I would use the small freedom to try to escape right now, or if I would play his game. If I ran, I would confirm I was working with Alex. If I stayed, I could send one more message to warn Alex that Hayden was setting a trap.
I looked at the recipe pad. I had to choose. It was a matter of life or death for both of us. The calm kindness was the most dangerous thing he had ever done.