Sleeping Witness

Outside, rain hammered the estate. Seven-year-old Ekaterina Nicola Seagal sat on the floor of her bedroom, surrounded by dismantled electronics, while her twin brother Lawrence sprawled across the bed behind her.

“You broke it again,” Lawrence said.

“I improved it.”

“It’s smoking.”

Katia glanced down at the small military radio resting in her lap, its metallic surface flickering erratically with random sparks. The sound of electrical crackling filled the air, creating an unsettling ambiance in the dimly lit room. She felt a wave of frustration wash over her as she fidgeted with the radio, knowing it was nothing more than a momentary setback. “This isn’t permanent,” she muttered to herself, determination rising within her.

Lawrence let out a dramatic groan and collapsed backward onto the bed. The old house normally felt alive. Staff moved through the halls. Security teams rotated shifts. Somewhere, a television was always playing. Someone was always talking. Not Tonight. Even the storm seemed distant beneath it. Katia glanced toward the bedroom door.

The old royal estate sat hidden deep within the forests outside the capital of Mimban, protected by stone walls, security patrols, and enough surveillance equipment to discourage most armies. Queen Anne had given the estate to Leia as a wedding gift years earlier.

Most people were terrified of Queen Anne.

Katia wasn't.

At least not usually.

The Queen smelled like expensive tea, carried enough authority to silence a room with a glance, and had once grounded three cabinet ministers during a state dinner.

Lawrence thought she was intimidating.

Katia thought she was funny.

The Queen had visited only a week earlier and spent an hour teaching Lawrence how to cheat at cards while pretending she wasn't. When Leia protested, Queen Anne had declared it a vital royal skill.

Nobody had argued.

Nobody ever argued with Queen Anne and won.

Yet for the past few weeks, safety had felt fragile. Like glass. Her father checked the security feeds constantly. Extra guards patrolled the grounds. More than once, Katia had caught staff members whispering when they thought the twins weren't listening. Nobody explained anything.

The grandfather clock downstairs struck nine. The sound echoed through the hallway. Then faded. For a moment, all Katia could hear was rain. And the strange feeling that the night was waiting for something.

It was supposed to be one of the safest places in Mimban. Queen Anne had presented the property to Leia after her marriage to William Seagal, although William was not fond of royal life. He preferred to dwell in shadows, keep secrets, and engage in work that remained unspoken. Even at seven years old, Katia saw her father as a threat—not to them, but to others.

Katia knew her father lived a different life than other fathers. Most children had parents who worked in offices. William Seagal disappeared for days at a time. Sometimes he came home with bruised knuckles and split lips. Sometimes he returned carrying classified files and a look in his eyes that warned everyone not to ask questions. Other times he didn't come home at all.

Katia had learned long ago that the people her father investigated were dangerous. Very dangerous. Over the past month, things had become worse. William checked the locks three times before bed. He carried a weapon everywhere, even inside the estate. Security patrols around the property had doubled.

Two nights ago, Katia had caught him standing at the dining room window long after midnight, staring into the darkness beyond the trees. Watching. Waiting. As if he expected someone to come out of the forest. When Katia asked what he was looking for, he had smiled and told her to go back to bed. That answer frightened her more than if he had told the truth. Tonight, he was late again. Lawrence looked down the hallway and said, “Mom’s worried.”

Katia was already aware of that. Leia tried to hide her concern, but Katia noticed everything. Their mother had checked the security cameras six times in the last hour. Katia glanced at the clock, which read 9:07 p.m. Just then, headlights swept across the rain-soaked windows downstairs. Lawrence immediately sat up. “He’s home.” The twins ran downstairs.

The front door opened moments later, and heavy footsteps echoed across the foyer. William Seagal stepped inside, rainwater dripping from his black coat. Blood struck one side of his jaw, and his knuckles were split open. Despite that, he smiled the moment he saw them.

"There are my insomniacs."

Lawrence launched himself down the stairs first. William caught him easily.

"Oof. You get heavier every time I see you."

"I'm growing."

"Like a weed."

Lawrence grinned.

William looked past him toward Katia.

"And what did you dismantle today?"

Katia froze.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Interesting answer."

"I fixed a radio."

Lawrence snorted.

"You blew up a radio."

"It was a controlled malfunction."

William laughed.

The sound filled the foyer and chased away some of the tension that had settled over the house.

"Controlled malfunction?" he repeated.

"That's what engineers call it."

"You are seven."

"I'm an advanced seven."

William crouched in front of her.

"Baby girl, one day you're either going to save the world or accidentally hack it."

"Probably both."

"That answer concerns me."

A smile tugged at his mouth.

For just a moment, he looked younger. Less like a man carrying secrets and more like a father standing in his own home with his children.

Then his eyes drifted briefly toward the dark windows.

The smile faded.

Only for a second.

But Katia noticed. Pulling Katia into his side. Katia immediately noticed the smell of gunpowder on his clothes. "You're hurt," she said.

“Occupational hazard.”

“That’s not an answer.”

A tired laugh escaped him. “You sound like your mother.” Leia appeared in the hallway wearing one of William’s old naval sweatshirts. Relief flooded her face the moment she saw him alive.

“You’re late.”

“I know.”

Leia stepped closer and quietly touched the blood on his cheek. William caught her wrist gently.

“Kids.”

Leia stopped immediately. The twins sat in silence; their bodies close yet emotionally apart. Despite their efforts to brush off the tension, Katia sensed it lurking just beneath the surface, palpable and heavy in the air. She could almost feel it wrap around them like a thick fog, a mixture of unspoken words and unresolved conflicts. The familiar bond that once bonded them so tightly was now strained, replaced by a gnawing fear that whispered of uncharted territory. What had once been easy camaraderie was now fraught with uncertainty, and Katia couldn't shake the feeling that the rift between them was growing wider with each passing moment.

William removed the shoulder holster beneath his coat before crouching in front of Katia. For a moment, he looked at her. Like he was memorizing her face. Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out her stuffed white rabbit. Its fur was worn soft with age. One button eye had been resewn crooked months earlier after Lawrence accidentally tore it off during an argument.

“You left this in my office,” William said.

Katia frowned. “No, I didn’t.”

Something unreadable crossed his face. Then he smiled faintly. “Guess I borrowed it.” He handed it to her carefully. Too carefully. Like it mattered more than a toy should. Katia hugged the rabbit automatically. William rested his hand against the side of her face. “If anything ever happens,” he said quietly, “you hold onto this for me.”

Katia blinked. “What do you mean?”

“Just promise me.”

Something cold slid down her spine. “I promise.”

William kissed the top of her head. As the kids headed off to their bedroom. William headed to his office off the dining room. Turned on his laptop. Moments later, Leia found William checking the security feed again. “You don’t have to do that; there are guards on duty."

William didn't answer.

"William."

His eyes remained on the monitor.

"Just being careful."

Leia stared at him. "You've never been afraid before."

For a moment, he didn't respond. Then he quietly said, "I'm not afraid for me." William closed the laptop and reached for Leia’s hand that was waiting for him. They started heading upstairs to the waiting twins.

Then the first explosion tore through the estate. The blast shook the entire house, knocking Lawrence off balance. Glass shattered in the sitting room. Alarms screamed instantly. Leia grabbed the twins at the same moment William reached for the gun beneath the table in the foyer. Another explosion followed. Then came automatic gunfire. Not outside. Inside the estate. William’s expression changed instantly. Every trace of warmth vanished. “Move,” he ordered.

The twins had never heard that tone before. Leia shoved them toward the hidden hallway behind the bookshelves that took them upstairs while William fired twice behind him. Men were already inside the house. Katia heard screaming in other rooms. Security guards started coming in from outside. One gunshot after another echoed through the estate. Someone yelled, “Find Seagal!”

Another voice screamed, “Get the children!”

Lawrence grabbed Katia’s hand hard enough to hurt. She squeezed back automatically. William moved toward them quickly. Blood already streaked across his shoulder. “Jack’s coming,” he told Leia.

Another burst of gunfire exploded nearby. Then footsteps thundered upstairs. Too fast. Too many. William looked toward the hallway and realized instantly they were out of time. The attackers burst onto the second floor wearing tactical gear marked with fake police insignias. But William recognized them anyway. Corrupt officers. Banks’ men. One aimed directly at the twins. William fired first.

The hallway erupted into deafening violence. Katia saw one man collapse backward into the wall. Another tackled William. Leia grabbed Lawrence. Someone screamed. Gunfire flashed again. Then Katia saw Senator Vernon Banks step out of the staircase shadows. Calm. Untouched. Smiling.

“You should’ve stayed buried, Seagal.”

William slammed another attacker into the wall hard enough to crack plaster. “You’re dead.”

Banks smiled wider. “Not tonight.”

One of the corrupt officers turned toward the twins. And fired. The first bullet struck Katia in the shoulder. The second hit her arm. The third slammed into her thigh. She screamed and fell. The hallway exploded into chaos. Lawrence dropped beside her instantly.

"KATIA!"

Another officer opened fire. Two more shots hit her before William could reach them. One tore through her calf. The last struck her high in the back. Pain, unlike anything she had ever known, ripped through her body. The world went white. She couldn't breathe. Couldn't think. Couldn't understand why everything hurt.

Lawrence grabbed her hand.

"It's okay," he said desperately.

"It's okay."

Then another gunshot cracked through the hallway.

Lawrence cried out. Blood erupted from his left arm. The force spun him sideways onto the floor.

"Katia!"

Katia tried to answer. Nothing happened. She tried to move her legs. Nothing. Her panic surged. She couldn't feel them. Not her knees. Not her feet. Not anything below her waist. The realization was worse than the pain. Something inside her was broken. Something important. Something that wasn't coming back.

William roared somewhere nearby. The sound barely reached her through the ringing in her ears. Everything was becoming distant. Dark. Cold. Gunfire erupted again. Jack O’Malley burst onto the second floor, firing military-grade rounds into the attackers.

“MOVE!”

He grabbed Lawrence first.

Lawrence fought him immediately.

“No! Katia!”

Jack hauled him backward anyway.

“KATIA!”

Katia reached toward her brother desperately. Blood spread beneath her across the hardwood floor. William killed another attacker near the staircase. Leia collapsed against the wall after being struck across the head. Banks disappeared into chaos. Everything became noise. Smoke. Screaming. Rain is pouring through the shattered windows. Lawrence’s voice echoed down the hallway while Jack carried him away.

“KATIA!”

Then darkness swallowed everything.

Officially, Princess Ekaterina Nicola Seagal died three hours later. Unofficially, Captain Nathan Bridger pushed her unconscious body on a gurney through a restricted naval transport tunnel beneath the capital while Queen Anne ordered an erasure of every hospital record connected to her existence. Seven-year-old Katia Seagal disappeared before sunrise.

And by morning, William Seagal had been framed as a corrupt detective involved in narcotics, trafficking, and organized crime. The investigation vanished. Evidence disappeared. Witnesses died. Senator Vernon Banks walked free.

And somewhere inside the unconscious grip of a dying little girl rested a stuffed white rabbit containing enough evidence to destroy everyone involved. No one realized the child still had it. Not even William.