416: Unseen Alliances

The atmosphere was thick with tension as Emma and her brothers reassembled in the living room, the echoes of their father’s unsettling words still resonating in their minds. His casual dismissal of their concerns about the diaries and his almost proprietary claim over their mother’s memories laid bare the deep currents of control he still exerted over them. “Do you think he’s been playing us all along?” Wayne’s voice broke the uneasy silence that had settled among them. Emma sighed, her thoughts a tangled mess. “It feels like it, doesn’t it? He’s always one step ahead. Just when we think we’re out of his shadow, we find out he’s been orchestrating our moves like chess pieces.” Maxwell, leaning against the mantelpiece, frowned deeply. “He’s given us just enough rope to think we’re free, only to yank it back at the last minute. And now with Teddy and his brother in the mix, it’s like he’s set up the board for a game we didn’t agree to play.” Wayne rubbed his temples wearily. “And no