Chapter 1 - At exactly 2:13 a.m., a masked man slipped through the back window of Blackwood Manor.The mansion stood alone behind iron gates at the end of a private road, surrounded by ancient trees and stone walls covered in winter ivy. From the outside, it looked less like a home and more like a fortress.
The thief had studied it for three weeks.
He knew the guard rotations.
He knew which cameras were real and which were decoys.
He knew the motion sensors on the eastern wing had been disabled for maintenance.
Most importantly, he knew the owners were supposed to be asleep.
His name was Daniel Cross.
He was thirty-eight years old, careful, disciplined, and experienced enough to know that entering a house like Blackwood Manor was suicide unless the reward was worth it.
And someone had promised him a fortune.
Twenty thousand dollars for one night.
Ten minutes inside.
One small black box.
Nothing else.
That was the deal.
Daniel carefully lowered himself through the window and landed silently on the marble floor.
He froze.
Nothing moved.
The hallway was completely dark.
He pulled his mask higher over his face and slowly removed the small flashlight from his jacket.
He didn't turn it on.
He already knew the floor plan.
Three steps forward.
Left hallway.
Study.
Then the staircase.
He moved like a shadow.
At the corner, he stopped and looked upward.
A security camera hung above the archway.
Daniel waited for it to rotate.
Three seconds.
Two.
One.
He crossed.
The camera turned.
He was already gone.
His breathing remained steady.
Everything was exactly as planned.
Then he reached the living room.
He gently pushed the door open.
Darkness.
He stepped inside.
His gloved hand found the light switch.
Click.
The room exploded into brightness.
Daniel stopped breathing.
Someone was sitting on the sofa.
An old man.
Perfectly calm.
He wore a perfectly pressed black suit, polished shoes, and a silver watch.
His hands rested casually on the arms of the chair.
He was staring directly at Daniel.
Daniel raised his weapon.
"Who the hell are you?"
The old man smiled.
"I'm the man who's been waiting for you."
Daniel's finger tightened around the trigger.
"What?"
The old man nodded toward the coffee table.
Daniel glanced down.
There was a photograph.
His photograph.
Taken by one of the mansion's security cameras earlier that evening.
Underneath it was a sheet of paper.
His full name.
His home address.
His date of birth.
Even his mother's address.
Daniel slowly lowered the gun.
"How did you get that?"
The old man didn't answer.
He simply said, "You're thirteen minutes late."
Daniel stared at the clock.
2:26 a.m.
Then he looked back at the old man.
"You knew I was coming."
"I knew you would come."
"Who sent you?"
The old man's smile disappeared.
"No."
His voice became colder.
"I'm asking you the questions."
He tapped the photograph.
"You weren't hired to steal anything."
Daniel swallowed.
"Then why am I here?"
The old man leaned forward.
"Because someone wanted to know whether you were still alive."
Daniel felt a chill travel down his spine.
"What does that mean?"
The old man looked toward the staircase.
"You're not the first one they've sent."
Suddenly, lights came on upstairs.
Daniel spun around.
Three masked men stood silently along the balcony.
Each carried a weapon.
The old man smiled.
"But you're the first one they sent back."
Daniel stared at them.
One of the three masked men stepped forward.
He removed his mask.
Daniel's face went white.
It was Thomas Reed.
Daniel's former partner.
Thomas had been dead for seven years.
Daniel stumbled backward.
"No..."
Thomas stared down at him.
Then he said four words.
"You should have killed me."
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The lights went out.
And Daniel heard the sound of a gun being cocked directly behind his head.
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