Chapter 112 The Spotlight

Chapter 112 The Spotlight
News outlets picked up the story. “Family Livestreams Their Own Assassination Attempts” ran on CNN. “Modern Survival Reality TV” said the Times, somehow both fascinated and disapproving.

By morning, they had fifty million viewers.

People tuned in during breakfast to watch Claire knead dough while Ariella narrated the contract law. During lunch breaks to see Lily sketch in the corner while explaining the network hierarchies and at night to watch Aiden review the company documents while Geoffrey Hale sat across from him, slowly,  and painfully telling his story.

“I built the architecture,” Geoffrey said on camera, his second day streaming. His hands shook but his voice held. “I wrote the contracts that let them steal billions. The ones that let them kill without consequence. I told myself I had no choice. That they’d kill Sophia if I didn’t cooperate. But the truth is…” His voice cracked. “The truth is I was a coward. And my cowardice enabled decades of murder.”

The comments section exploded.

He’s actually crying

This is real. Holy shit, this is actually real

How is this legal? How did they get away with this?

“They’re invested,” Jessica reported from her producer’s station, a desk crammed with monitors and coffee cups. “Engagement is through the roof. People are following like it’s a serialized drama. But…” She hesitated.

“But what?” Ariella asked.

“But some comments are concerning. People are saying you’re putting your kids in danger. That this is irresponsible. That you’re using your trauma for clicks.”

“Are they wrong?” Aiden asked quietly.

Nobody answered.

Elena and Ethan were kept off-camera. Non-negotiable but their presence was felt…toys in the background, Claire occasionally disappearing to check on them, the sound of a toddler laughing from the apartment upstairs.

“We’re not exploiting them,” Ariella said firmly. “We’re protecting them. This is the only way we know how.”

“I know,” Jessica said. “And most people get it. But be prepared for backlash. It’s coming.”

It came on Day 4.

An op-ed in the Washington Post: “The Frosts Are Weaponizing Their Children’s Safety for Attention”

A segment on Fox News: “Is This Trauma or Performance?”

Think pieces about the ethics of livestreaming danger. About whether they were brave or reckless. About whether the network was even real or if this was an elaborate hoax.

“They’re trying to discredit us,” Marcus said, watching the coverage. “Make people question whether the threat is real, If enough people think it’s fake, public pressure evaporates, then we will lose our protection.”

“Then we will prove it’s real,” Lily said.

She’d been quiet all morning. Working on something. Now she stood and walked to the camera.

“Hi,” she said to the fifty million people watching. “I’m Lily Frost. Aiden’s sister, I’m seventeen. And for the last four months, I’ve been documenting a network operative who’s been watching my family.”

She held up her sketchbook and started showing pages.

The man with the tattoo, the he meetings, the building in Red Hook, and every detail she’d observed and drawn.

“This is Geoffrey Hale,” she said, gesturing to where he sat. “He’s been trapped by the network for twenty years. Used his daughter as leverage to force compliance. Then killed her when she threatened to expose them.”

Geoffrey flinched but didn’t contradict her.

“And this…” Lily pulled out her phone. Played the audio from the Red Hook building. The audio she’d recorded before Ariella had found her. “This is them planning the next move, My name isn’t in it. But my brother’s is, my sister-in-law’s, my niece and nephew’s.”

The audio was damning, Clear, Specific threats.

“So for everyone questioning whether this is real…” Lily looked directly at the camera. “It’s real. They’re really trying to kill us. We’re really fighting back. And if you stop watching, if you stop caring, we will die, It’s that simple.”

She walked away from the camera.

The comment section went silent, then exploded.

Oh my god

She’s just a kid

I’m not sleeping until this is over

Who do we call? How do we help?

“Sixty million viewers,” Jessica said quietly. “You just got sixty million people invested in keeping you alive.”

“Is that enough?” Lily asked.

“I don’t know, but it’s more than we had yesterday.”